Customs seize 12.5kg smuggled gold worth ₹8.5 crore at airport

According to the customs officials, several teams were formed after receiving specific information and data of the passengers travelling from abroad to Mumbai. Two foreign nationals travelling from Nairobi to Mumbai were intercepted at the airport heading towards the green channel

MUMBAI: The Mumbai airport Customs has intercepted 20 people, including two foreign nationals, in the last two days, and seized over 12.5kg gold valued at ₹8.5 crore at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport.

Customs seize 12.5kg smuggled gold worth ₹8.5 crore at airport

The Customs officials claim that the gold was found in various forms like gold dust in wax, crude jewellery, gold coins, Rhodium plated Payals and gold bars and was concealed in an ingenious way in the body, luggage and in clothes of the passengers.

The officials said that they have arrested 11 passengers out of 20 under the Customs Act for smuggling gold to India from abroad.

According to the customs officials, several teams were formed after receiving specific information and data of the passengers travelling from abroad to Mumbai. Two foreign nationals travelling from Nairobi to Mumbai were intercepted at the airport heading towards the green channel. When checking they were found carrying 25 melted gold bars weighing 1,144 grams concealed in the pockets of burqa worn by two women passengers.

In the second operation, another team intercepted seven Indian Nationals one was travelling from Dubai, three from Jeddah, one from Addis Ababa, one from Bahrain, and one from Bangkok. They were carrying 5,903 grams of gold, hidden inside undergarments, in the back pocket of pants, in the rectum and on the body of passengers. They were carrying more than half kg of gold and therefore all of them were arrested for smuggling.

A third team of the customs department intercepted eleven Indian Nationals- three were travelling from Abu Dhabi, five were from Dubai, two from Jeddah, and one from Kuwait while they arrived at the airport and were heading to green channel.

During the search they were found carrying 5,480 grams of gold which were concealed in cardboard, in the pocket of the burqa worn by the passenger, in the right side back pocket of the trouser, inside the stomach of passengers, in the rectum and on the body, said customs official.

The passengers were aware that there was a huge difference in the value of gold in India and the value of gold in Dubai and other countries.

Earlier, on Saturday, the Customs Department arrested three foreign national women and a male Indian passenger in two separate cases of gold smuggling and allegedly seized gold worth Rs. 5.85 crore from them.

Air Intelligence Unit (AIU) intercepted Amit Parasmal Jain, holding an Indian passport when he was heading to the green channel. He was coming from Dubai to Mumbai by Indigo Airlines and during a personal search the official found 44 gold bars of 24KT gold total weight of 5,127 grams worth ₹3.25 crore. Jain had purchased the gold from Dubai and was supposed to sell the gold in the local market in India to make profits.

In another case, the official three women passengers identified as Samira Mohamed Abdi, Feiza Abdi Dekh Hassan, and Fardowsa Ahmed Abdi, were holding Kenyan passports when they arrived at CSMI airport, Mumbai on Saturday. They came from Addis Ababa to Mumbai by Ethiopian Airlines and were found smuggling 22 KT gold melted bars totaling 4,483 grams collectively valued at ₹2.60 crore.