According to officials, the number of smuggling cases has witnessed a steep rise since the demonetization drive was announced
From hiding it in slippers and babies’ diapers to swallowing or tucking the goodies in their rectums — smugglers seem to have tried all possible, and increasingly bizarre, ways of sneaking out with illegal gold at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA). And yet, somehow, they keep coming up with even weirder methods to conduct their ‘business’.
In 2016, the IGIA customs seized more than 220kg gold, valued to be over Rs 60 crore. More than 90 passengers were arrested in these cases. In fact, in the last one week alone, gold worth over Rs 1 crore was seized from the airport. According to officials, the number of smuggling cases has witnessed a steep rise since the demonetisation drive was announced.
Last Thursday, following a tip-off, customs sleuths intercepted two men who had alighted from Dubai-Delhi Air India Express flight-IX 142. The passengers, both of whom had Indian passports, were asked to cooperate in frisking and luggage screening at Terminal 3.
“The men were caught while they were about to cross the green channel. During the screening of their baggage, six gold bars worth over Rs 32 lakh were found hidden in their baggage trolley. The pieces were taped inside the trolley and hidden under the luggage to avoid suspicion,” a senior customs officer said.
The recovery was made by a team led by Govind Garg, Deputy Commissioner, Customs, IGIA. “The total value of the gold was Rs 3,249,580. It was seized under the Customs Act-1962 and the two passengers were arrested under section 104 of the Act. Further investigation is underway,” Garg said.
In another such seizure just a day before, gold worth Rs 27 lakh was recovered from two Indian passengers, who had arrived in Delhi from Bangkok. “They were hiding small gold pieces inside their slippers. The slippers were first cut into half and then pasted together after placing tiny gold pieces inside,” an officer said.
Mentioning other strange modus operandi, customs officers said in one case, gold worth Rs 75 lakh was hidden inside a papaya. In some other cases, gold bars wrapped in paper or cloth were recovered from body cavities of the passengers.
Talking about how they zero in on a suspect, a senior officer said: “We closely study the travel itinerary of suspects and then follow them up. In many cases, we have tip-offs from sources. In other cases, we profile the suspects ourselves.”
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