Senior airline official held for gold smuggling

A senior supervisor of an airline was arrested in connection with alleged gold smuggling at Sanganer airport here, officials said today.
Sameer Nigam, who was acting as a middleman, took gold bars weighing 3-kg from a passenger of a flight from Dubai on Saturday, but dumped them in a dustbin when he found out that he was under surveillance.
"We detained him on Saturday and interrogated him. He confessed that he had taken the bars from a passenger for delivering it to another party," Deputy Commissioner (Customs) HS Meena said.
Meena said Nigam was taking advantage of his position and carrying out such activities. "The gold bars were exchanged between him and the passenger near a washroom," he said.

Nigam has been arrested under Customs Act, Meena said, adding he was sent to judicial custody yesterday.
The passenger has been identified but he had already left the airport and is yet to be arrested, Meena said, adding that a couple of other passengers have also been identified in this connection.