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₹4.76 cr seized in Andhra from luggage cabin of bus, 10 held
West Godavari Superintendent of Police Rahul Dev Sharma told reporters that ten persons, including two gold merchants, besides the driver and cleaner of the bus, were taken into custody for questioning.
Andhra Pradesh police seized ₹4.76 crore in cash and 352 grams of gold from the luggage cabin of a private bus in West Godavari district, officials said on Friday.
West Godavari Superintendent of Police Rahul Dev Sharma told reporters that ten persons, including two gold merchants, besides the driver and cleaner of the bus, were taken into custody for questioning.
Sharma said based on specific information that some persons were smuggling gold besides carrying unaccounted cash, police intercepted a private bus proceeding from Vijayawada to Srikakulam at Ananthapalli toll plaza near Veeravalli village of Nallajerla block at around 5 am.
“The cash was stashed in several bags stored in the luggage carrier beneath the seats. We have also seized three vehicles – a Toyota Innova, a Hyundai Creta and a Maruti Ertiga car – which were escorting the bus. The inmates of the bus and the cars could not account for the cash or gold and failed to produce the documents,” the SP said.
The police counted the seized cash, and it amounted to ₹47,689,050. The arrested were identified as S. Krishna Ramanjaneyulu (bus driver), V. Durga Prasad, Viswas Teja, M. Srinivas, P. Koti, S. Papa Rao, R. Narendra, G. Lakshman Rao, A. Kishore and P. Ramesh, natives of Vijayawada and Eluru, the SP said.
The police have alerted the Income Tax and the Customs department officials. A Case was booked Under Section 41 (arrest without warrant) and Section 102 (seizure of property found under suspicious circumstances) of Criminal Procedure Code.
