Mumbai: The Maharashtra unit of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) on Tuesday seized four kilos of gold worth Rs 2.58 crore at the Mumbai airport and arrested four persons in connection with the gold smuggling into India, sources said. DRI officer Praveen Jindal informed that the operation was carried out based on a tip-off received by the officials of the Mumbai Zonal Unit of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence.
Jindal said that following the inputs, the DRI team intercepted two suspected passengers from Jeddah at Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport on January 16. The suspects were searched by DRI officials and it was found that 1 kg of gold powder was hidden in the form of wax, Jindal said.
He said that both passengers had a cloth sewn into their inner garments for concealment. The smuggled gold was seized from them. Also, during the search of the belongings of these persons, the authorities checked three mixer grinders suspected to be heavier than usual. When the mixer part was opened, it was found that around 2 kg gold pieces were hidden in it, said Jindal.
He said that a total of 4 kg of smuggled gold worth Rs 2.58 crore has been seized. During the investigation and interrogation of the two passengers, the DRI team arrested two more persons who had come to collect the smuggled gold from the passengers. The four accused were later booked under the relevant provisions of the Customs Act, 1962.
DRI has successfully carried out this operation to expose the growing syndicate involved in gold smuggling, an official said.
