CHENNAI: Customs officials on Tuesday said they detained for questioning two Chinese nationals after an unclaimed bag containing 40kg of
gold bars worth 12.6 crore, apparently left by the duo, was found in a toilet at Chennai international airport.
The two middle-aged men, who had arrived in the morning by
Cathay Pacific Airlines flight CX 631 from Hong Kong, were not carrying any checked-in baggage and may have panicked on seeing the tight vigilance protocol at the airport and after hanging around the airport for a while would have left for the city hotel where they were found later in the evening, said an official release.
Earlier, after a blue stroller bag was found, during a check, in a toilet, customs officials opened the bag with Chinese markings and found the gold, in 1kg bars, concealed in two plastic boxes. After carefully examining
CCTV camera footage a special team fanned out across the city, focusing on the major hotels, before zeroing in on the duo, customs officials said. The names of the two men and the hotel from where they were picked up have not been revealed as it is a sensitive case, sources added. The daring attempt may have been made thinking that foreign passengers would not be ‘disturbed’, sources added.
The recovered gold has been seized under the provisions of Customs Act, 1962.
Representative image