Man arrested at IGI during a gold smuggling bid

Officials found that the plastic cap of a beverage bottle had been tampered with. Inside it was a small cylindrical piece of gold, crafted to fit snugly within the cap, in an attempt to make it difficult to detect

An Indian national has been arrested at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International (IGI) airport by the customs department for trying to smuggle in gold worth ₹18 lakh inside the cap of a plastic water bottle, officials said on Sunday.

The incident occurred on Saturday when the passenger arrived at Terminal-3 (File photo)

The incident occurred on Saturday when the passenger arrived at Terminal-3 via Air India flight AI-996 from Dubai. Based on a tip-off, customs said, an official discreetly followed him from the flight gate before being stopped at the exit of the green channel.

“The man was asked to undergo a baggage and physical inspection. During an X-ray of his baggage, officers noticed suspicious images and decided to examine his belongings further,” said a customs official.

Upon carrying out a detailed inspection, officials found that the plastic cap of a beverage bottle had been tampered with. Inside it was a small cylindrical piece of gold, crafted to fit snugly within the cap, in an attempt to make it difficult to detect.

“A cylindrical piece of gold was concealed under the cap of a PET bottle in a very ingenious manner which the passenger was carrying. The total weight of the gold was found to be 170 grams, which is worth ₹18 lakh. Though the quantity was small, the concealment technique was novel,” the senior customs official said.

The recovered gold and the passenger have been arrested and will be investigated further, officials added.