The Customs department has seized 6.2 kg gold worth Rs 1.55 crore from three passengers, including a woman, in three separate cases, at Mumbai airport.
Acting on a tip-off, seat number 23F in an Air India flight from Dubai was rummaged and 37 gold bars collectively weighing 4.3 kg were recovered yesterday from the anterior support pipe, located below the seat cushion, said a Customs officer.
"We caught passenger Rahmatullah Ali Farid, who occupied the seat and his personal search resulted in the recovery of 200 grams of assorted studded jewellery," said the official.
During the interrogation, Farid confessed to concealing the gold in the flight at Dubai and stated that his associate, who could be either a passenger or a staff member at airport, was to remove the yellow metal in Goa upon the flight's landing from Mumbai. The accused was subsequently arrested.
In the second case, passenger Ranbir Sharma was arrested for allegedly trying to smuggle in 1.13 kg gold valued at Rs 27.93 lakh from Dubai.
As many as 60 silver coloured gold rings embossed on two belts were found while 18 washer shaped gold metallic parts were found concealed in various parts of a trolley bag.
Four rectangular shaped gold plates were also concealed in the trolley bag handle base whereas 110 silver coloured gold button rings were hidden in baby napkins. One crude gold chain and two gold coins were also recovered from Sharma, who arrived here today from Dubai.
In a separate case, six crude gold bangles weighing 465 grams and one crude gold chain with pendant weighing 174 grams collectively valued at Rs 15.77 lakh were recovered from a female passenger Tripti Mehta, who arrived from Dubai on a Jet airways flight. She was later allowed to go after interrogation today.
As per the norms, if the seized gold is valued below Rs 20 lakh, the alleged person is not placed under arrest, but the Customs department initiates an inquiry against him/her so that penalty or fine could be imposed once the probe is over.
