PUNE: Customs officials nabbed a woman carrying 642 gram of gold worth Rs 20 lakh in semi-solid paste form at the Lohegaon airport on Sunday.
The woman, identified as Mariyam Mohammed Salim Sheikh of Mumbai, was found carrying the gold carefully concealed inside three capsules in her rectum, Pune customs officials said.
“The woman was intercepted by the team on the basis of intelligence reports and inputs. She had come to Pune from Dubai on a SpiceJet flight (SG52), which landed at the Lohegaon airport at 4am on Sunday. After the due process and assistance of the medical team, the gold paste was found concealed in her rectum,” a customs official said.
The customs officials said the woman seemed to be a wilful carrier. “The three capsules were covered in black adhesive tape and contained gold in semi-solid paste. In total, 642g of gold worth Rs 20 lakh has been recovered from her,” the official said.
“Further investigations under the Customs Act 1962 is under progress in the case. We appeal all passengers to report to us of any suspicious person/s and baggage at the Pune airport. Body concealment of contraband material is the most risky, painful and fatal for the one carrying it. Though Pune has less direct international flights now, the alertness level is the same,” the official said.
In a similar recovery, the customs officials had arrested a man, a resident of Bhatkal in Karnataka, from the airport after he was found to be concealing gold in his rectum in May last year. “We had also caught a man who was trying to exit the Pune airport with gold hidden in his wig in May last year. He was trying to smuggle in 957.10 gram of gold worth Rs 31.13 lakh,” another customs official said.
In October 2018, the customs authorities had caught four African women, following which more than 2kg of gold worth Rs 66.50 lakh was recovered from them. These women, who hailed from Sudan, had also concealed the gold in their rectum.
“In the recent past, the smugglers have used the carriers and have devised different ways to hide gold. There is no definite trend when it comes to concealment and the tricks,” a source said.
The woman, identified as Mariyam Mohammed Salim Sheikh of Mumbai, was found carrying the gold carefully concealed inside three capsules in her rectum, Pune customs officials said.
“The woman was intercepted by the team on the basis of intelligence reports and inputs. She had come to Pune from Dubai on a SpiceJet flight (SG52), which landed at the Lohegaon airport at 4am on Sunday. After the due process and assistance of the medical team, the gold paste was found concealed in her rectum,” a customs official said.
The customs officials said the woman seemed to be a wilful carrier. “The three capsules were covered in black adhesive tape and contained gold in semi-solid paste. In total, 642g of gold worth Rs 20 lakh has been recovered from her,” the official said.
“Further investigations under the Customs Act 1962 is under progress in the case. We appeal all passengers to report to us of any suspicious person/s and baggage at the Pune airport. Body concealment of contraband material is the most risky, painful and fatal for the one carrying it. Though Pune has less direct international flights now, the alertness level is the same,” the official said.
In a similar recovery, the customs officials had arrested a man, a resident of Bhatkal in Karnataka, from the airport after he was found to be concealing gold in his rectum in May last year. “We had also caught a man who was trying to exit the Pune airport with gold hidden in his wig in May last year. He was trying to smuggle in 957.10 gram of gold worth Rs 31.13 lakh,” another customs official said.
In October 2018, the customs authorities had caught four African women, following which more than 2kg of gold worth Rs 66.50 lakh was recovered from them. These women, who hailed from Sudan, had also concealed the gold in their rectum.
“In the recent past, the smugglers have used the carriers and have devised different ways to hide gold. There is no definite trend when it comes to concealment and the tricks,” a source said.
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