Passenger held with over Rs 1 crore gold in paste form from Tiruchy airport

TIRUCHY: A male passenger who arrived from Singapore was apprehended at the Tiruchirapalli Airport with gold worth over one crore, the Customs Department said on Friday.

"Officers of the Air Intelligence Unit at Tiruchirapalli International Airport intercepted a male passenger who attempted to cross the green channel and recovered gold in paste form concealed under knee caps worn by him in his thighs," said an official press release.

The gold seized weighs 1.605 kg and has a market value of Rs 1.16 crore, according to the statement. The passenger had arrived from Singapore on Scoot Airlines TR562. Further investigation is underway, officials said. In May this year, three passengers were arrested and 96 gold rods worth Rs 16.17 lakh were seized from them at Tiruchirappalli airport.

According to Customs, the gold rods weighing 235 gms were concealed in the bottom wheels screws of three trolly bags carried by the accused, who arrived from Kuala Lumpur by Air Asia flight. On April 27, officers of the Air Intelligence Unit (AIU) at Tiruchirappalli airport seized a total of 977 grams of gold valued at Rs 70.58 lakh from a passenger arriving from Dubai.

According to the officials, the gold was concealed in the three packets consisting of 1081 grams of paste-like material in the rectum of the passenger. The passenger travelling from Dubai to Trichy on the Air India Express was arrested.