The police busted a smuggling plot to move millions of dollars worth of whale vomit

• The police in India foiled an attempt to smuggle whale vomit worth millions.
• Police said they arrested three people attempting to transport the substance via car.

Police in India foiled a plan to smuggle at least $1.8 million worth of ambergris, an incredibly valuable rare whale vomit.

The police nabbed smugglers near the coast of Tamil Nadu in South India on May 20, per Newsweek. Acting on a tip-off, they stopped a car with the smugglers and confiscated the stolen ambergris, which weighed at least 22 pounds, per Newsweek.

Ambergris is a waxy substance found in the digestive systems of sperm whales, which has a strong fecal odor when it is fresh, per the Natural History Museum in the United Kingdom.

Dubbed the "treasure of the sea" and "floating gold" by the museum, it is used in perfumes to make the scents last longer. Brands like Chanel and Lanvin use it as an ingredient in their scents, a National Geographic report revealed.

The police superintendent for the city of Mysuru, Seema Latkar, told reporters that the price of the substance was about $181,000 to $241,500 for every 2.2 pounds, according to the media outlet The Hindu. She added that three people were arrested in relation to the smuggling case.

In 2021, a group of 35 fishermen in Yemen found themselves the owners of 280 pounds of ambergris after they lugged a sperm whale carcass ashore and discovered the substance in its stomach.

The treasure was worth $1.5 million, which they used to buy houses, cars, and boats for themselves.

"The smell wasn't very nice, but it was worth lots of money," one of the fishermen told the BBC.

Police in India did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.