On Wednesday, customs officers at Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi seized 2,755 grams of gold valued at Rs. $3.8 crore and arrested an Indian passenger in connection with the alleged gold smuggling attempt.
The passenger, who arrived from Sharjah on flight IX-136 on June 1, was intercepted at the bus gate upon arrival.
Acting on intelligence, officials launched a follow-up operation on board the aircraft to trace and recover the suspected smuggled goods. During a detailed inspection of the plane, officers found two black bags weighing approximately 3,550 grams.
Officials said the gold was found in the form of paste hidden in bags under seat No. 22C, which was located directly in front of seat No. 23C occupied by the suspected passenger.
Authorities said the recovered gold was assessed at a tariff value of $3,80,48,523. The gold, concealed in the form of paste, was confiscated under Section 110 of the Customs Act, 1962 and the passenger was arrested under Section 104 of the Customs Act, 1962.
Further investigations are underway.
Two men booked on charges of gold smuggling at Delhi airport
In a similar incident, Two Indian passengers have been booked Customs officials said at the Indira Gandhi International Airport on May 13 for trying to smuggle 233.5 grams and 117 grams of gold respectively.
The officials added that the two arrived on two different flights from Jeddah and Doha in Terminal 3.
“Detailed examination revealed a modus operandi where water bottles were specially modified with a fake base concealing circular pieces of raw gold plated in silver and precisely crafted to fit inside,” an official said.
A video shared by customs officials showed an official hitting a blue water bottle on the ground, resulting in the recovery of a round bottom that later turned out to be gold.
DRI controls the gold smuggling network at the airport
In another incident, the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI). Arrest of a gold smuggling gang 3 kg of smuggled gold seized through Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport in Mumbai $4.8 crore and the arrest of a food outlet employee accused of helping in transporting smuggled goods out of the airport.
