Kuwait passenger caught with ₹1.57 crore worth gold…

A passenger who had travelled from Kuwait to Chennai was caught for smuggling gold. On a tip of received by the Air Customs, an intelligence team conducted an Anti-Smuggling operation at Chennai airport on 21st July 2024.

The intelligence team on search identified a passenger who had come from Kuwait and searched him and his belongings. On search they found out that the passenger was wearing a belt wrapped with black colour cloth around his waist concealed with three white colour pouches.

On examination, each pouch was found to contain the precious metal in paste form and after extraction into a single gold ingot of 24k purity, weighed 2398 grams and valued at ₹1.57 Crores.

In an Anti-Smuggling operation, one male Indian passenger, arrived from Kuwait to Chennai on 21.07.2024 was intercepted on the basis of specific intelligence developed by Air Customs. Upon his personal search, a black colour cloth belt was found wrapped around his waist, concealing 3 white colour pouches.

The extracted gold was seized by the Air Customs Officers under the Customs Act, 1962. The passenger, was arrested and produced before the Judge of Alandur District Court, who remanded him to judicial custody. He was then lodged in Central Prison, Puzhal, Chennai. Further investigation is under progress.