Archive · 4 Oct 2025
Perfume Bottle Mistaken for Opium Leads to Visa Trouble
Kapil Raghu, an Indian man, was pulled over by police in Arkansas.
Officers found a perfume bottle labeled 'Opium' in his car and thought it contained illegal drugs.
Despite Raghu explaining it was just perfume, he was arrested.
Although the charges were dropped when the lab confirmed it was perfume, Raghu spent three days in jail and was then held by immigration for nearly a month.
His visa was affected, delaying his path to becoming a US citizen.
He is now trying to restore his visa status.
An Indian man was detained after a perfume bottle was mistaken for opium.
The incident occurred during a traffic stop in Arkansas.
Raghu was initially arrested and spent time in jail.
The charges were later dropped when the substance was identified as perfume.
His visa status was impacted and he was detained by ICE for nearly a month.
- Who
- Kapil Raghu, an Indian national.
- What
- Was detained for nearly a month due to a perfume bottle mistaken for opium.
- When
- May 3, 2025.
- Where
- Benton, Arkansas, and a federal immigration facility in Louisiana.
- Why
- Police mistakenly identified Raghu's perfume bottle as opium, leading to his arrest and subsequent ICE detention.
- Incident Date
- May 3, 2025
- Location
- Benton, Arkansas
- Individual Involved
- Kapil Raghu
- Substance
- YSL “Opium” perfume
- Detention
- Nearly a month by ICE
- Visa Status
- Revoked (temporarily)