Customs officials seize Rs 8.5 crore worth gold at Chennai airport; Sri Lankan man and Indigo airline staff arrested
The passenger was arrested along with an Indigo airline staff member who was involved in the smuggling operation.
CHENNAI: In a major bust, customs officials at Chennai airport seized 13.5 kg of gold worth Rs 8.5 crore from a passenger who arrived from Singapore on Saturday evening.
The passenger, a 29-year-old Sri Lankan man, was attempting to smuggle the gold into India. He had hidden the gold in a parcel and was trying to pass it off as a legitimate shipment.
The customs officials had received a tip-off about a large quantity of gold being smuggled into Chennai on Sunday, and were keeping vigil on passengers arriving from Singapore, Malaysia, and Sri Lanka.
On Saturday evening, while monitoring passengers from Singapore, they kept an eye on a 29-year-old passenger who was seated in the waiting area at the airport. He had travelled on an Indigo flight to Chennai and was supposed to fly to Dubai on Sunday morning.
Officials noticed him having discussions with an IndiGo airline staff. The man also gave the staff a parcel. When the officials seized the parcel, they found gold worth Rs 8.5 crore inside.
This is one of the largest gold seizures at the Chennai airport in recent times.
The passenger was arrested along with the airline staff member.
Investigation is underway to find out if the passenger is part of a large gold smuggling syndicate.
