Woman caught at airport with gold bars worth Rs 64 lakh

MUMBAI: A woman flying in from Dubai was arrested at the Mumbai international airport for trying to smuggle gold bars worth Rs 64 lakh.

MUMBAI: A woman flying in from Dubai was arrested at the Mumbai international airport for trying to smuggle gold bars worth Rs 64 lakh.

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Farhat Unnisa, a Hyderabad resident, was intercepted by Air Intelligence Unit (AIU) officers on Monday morning. A search found the gold bars were hidden in a black cloth purse in her underwear.

“The passenger was attempting to surreptitiously remove gold bars weighing 2,150 gm, valued at Rs 64.38 lakh. We have seized the gold under provisions of the Customs Act, 1962,” said Rajiv Ranjan, additional commissioner of customs, Mumbai.

Unnisa has admitted to possessing, carrying and hiding the 11 gold bars without paying duty. An initial probe showed she was a carrier and was to hand over the gold to another person waiting outside the airport. Sources said the second person escaped soon after s/he got a whiff of Unnisa being caught.

“We are looking for the person who was to receive the gold bars. As the gold amount is less than Rs1 crore, Unnisa has been granted bail on a surety of Rs1 lakh,” said an officer.

The woman was to fly to Hyderabad after making the delivery.

“There are several instances of gold smuggling from Dubai as there is no restriction there,” the officer added.

On August 18, the AIU intercepted a passenger passing through the green channel, carrying gold worth Rs 17 lakh.