Indore: 5.5 Kg smuggled gold seized by DRI, 7 arrested

The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) of Indore zone has apprehended seven passengers including a female with approximately 5.5 kg of gold in their possession.

The gold valued at Rs 2.10 crore was purchased from Dubai. The seven persons who have been arrested in connection with this smuggling are all natives of Ulhasnagar in Maharashtra.

It is the second biggest catch by Indore DRI after October 2018 in which 6 kg of smuggled gold was seized.

Smuggled gold from Dubai was brought in the form of a powdery paste by these passengers on an Air India flight. It is the first such catch after the start of an international flight from Dubai to Indore in July 2019. The onward tickets for these passengers were booked for Mumbai by an Indigo flight.

These passengers are frequent flyers on the international route.

To hide the yellow metal, they chemically treated the gold and converted it into form of a paste. The gold in paste form was hidden in body clothing and undergarments, the officials said.

Searches are going on to trace out further links. A case under the Customs Act 1962 has been registered. Further investigation is underway.