A South Beach hotel owner was arrested at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport after he was found with heroin, cocaine and other drugs there this week, authorities said.
Transportation Security Administration officers stopped Vikram Chatwal, 41 – the Dream South Beach hotelier who is a friend of Lindsay Lohan – after he entered the TSA checkpoint in Terminal 3 on Tuesday, a Broward Sheriff’s Office arrest report said.
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A search of his carry-on bag revealed different types of loose white pills that appeared to be controlled substances, the report said. While those pills were investigated, the TSA discovered a white powder in Chatwal’s top right jacket pocket, and authorities determined that it was cocaine weighing about half a gram, the report added.
The New York City resident was arrested, and authorities subsequently found a clear baggie in the crotch of his pants that contained about 6 grams of heroin, about 3.5 grams of marijuana, and about half a gram of Ketamine, according to the report.
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Authorities also determined that the pills in his carry-on bag included 3 bars of Xanax, 9 tablets of Buprenorphine, 4 tablets of 2-mg Lorazepam and one half-tablet of Clonazopam, along with three foil packets of pills that were not controlled drugs, the report said. Chatwal did not provide prescriptions for any of them, and after he was read his Miranda rights, he admitted to narcotics detectives that he possessed and bought the controlled substances illegally, the report said.
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Chatwal faces eight counts in all, including for heroin trafficking, and possession of cocaine, marijuana and the prescription drugs, the report said. It wasn’t immediately known if Chatwal has an attorney.
A hotel spokesman did not immediately return a phone call seeking comment on Chatwal's arrest.
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Photo Credit: Broward Sheriff's Office