2.32 kg gold seized at airport, one passenger arrested

A man was arrested for attempting to smuggle 2.32 kg gold worth ₹1.14 crore at Chennai airport.

In a new modus operandi, Chennai Air Customs found that smugglers hid gold in an aircraft from Dubai and they deployed a domestic passenger, who would travel from enroute cities and then retrieve gold, according to a release. Officials intercepted Mohabath Khan, who travelled by a Chennai-Guwahati-Chennai flight, which earlier arrived from Dubai, and found 1.16 kg of gold tied to his waist in a cloth pouch.

During questioning, he told the officials that he travelled in the flight from Chennai to Guwahati and then returned by the same flight to retrieve the gold.

He said he was asked to retrieve gold from two seats in the aircraft but he could find gold only from one seat.

He was then arrested.

When officials checked the aircraft, they found five rectangular pieces covered in black tapes and tied to a thread along with a metal piece and concealed in a hollow pipe of a seat, the release said. Officials found 10 gold bars weighing 1.16 kg and worth ₹57.1 lakh in the package.