DRI Busts Gold Smuggling Syndicate at Mumbai Airport; 15 kg Gold Worth Rs.23 Crore Seized
Mumbai, June 26 (TNT): The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has busted a highly organised gold smuggling syndicate operating through Mumbai Airport, unearthed an illegal gold melting facility and arrested nine persons involved in the racket.
About 6 kg of foreign-origin smuggled gold was recovered and seized during the operation, the agency said in a release on Friday.
Those arrested include an airport staff member, a handler, three intermediaries, the operator of the gold melting facility and three persons engaged in the melting process.
According to the DRI, the syndicate had established a dedicated facility to melt smuggled foreign-origin gold to conceal its identity and facilitate its distribution.
In a separate operation in Bengaluru, DRI officials seized 1.8 kg of 24-carat gold in paste form ingeniously concealed within the layers of an international passenger’s garments.
A subsequent search at the passenger’s residence led to the seizure of around 1.5 kg of gold jewellery, 45 kg of silver and Indian as well as foreign currencies. The passenger was arrested.
The DRI also carried out a series of operations earlier this week at airports, railway stations and land customs stations in Hyderabad, Rajkot, Kozhikode, Visakhapatnam, Guwahati and Petrapole, resulting in the seizure of another 6 kg of foreign-origin smuggled gold. Five persons were arrested in these operations.
Overall, the recent operations led to the seizure of around 15 kg of gold and 45 kg of silver, collectively valued at about Rs.23 crore. A total of 15 persons have been arrested.
The agency said the case highlights the increasing sophistication of organised gold smuggling networks, which are exploiting insider access at airports and using layered distribution channels to evade detection.
TNT TS
