Customs officers at Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Hyderabad successfully seized 3.743 kgs of smuggled gold worth Rs 2.29 crore. The operation took place on August 5, 2023, and was based on passenger profiling and surveillance.
In the first case, two passengers arriving from Jeddah were caught smuggling 594 gms of gold worth Rs 36.41 lakhs. The gold was hidden inside an iron box.
The second case involved another pair of passengers arriving from Jeddah. They were found attempting to smuggle a larger quantity of gold – 1225 gms worth Rs 75.14 lakhs. The gold was cleverly concealed in a portable speaker and light, as well as three gold capsules inside one of the individual’s rectum.
The third case involved a passenger traveling from Dubai to Hyderabad. Authorities discovered 1924 gms of gold in paste form worth Rs 1.18 crore hidden in the passenger’s underwear. This passenger was caught due to specific intelligence.
As a result of the successful operations, both passengers from the second and third cases were arrested under the provisions of the Customs Act of 1962.