Kerala couple held at Ahmedabad airport with gold jewellery worth Rs 28.87 lakh
Ahmedabad, Aug 17 (IANS) Customs officials at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport (SVPIA) in Ahmedabad seized 219.43 grams of gold jewellery worth Rs 28.87 lakh from a woman passenger, who arrived from Sharjah along with her husband, officials said.
The couple, who are from Kasaragod in Kerala, arrived in Ahmedabad on Air Arabia flight G9-418 from Sharjah.
Acting on intelligence developed through passenger profiling, officers of the Air Intelligence Unit (AIU) of Ahmedabad Customs on Sunday intercepted the two passengers for examination.
During the examination, the female passenger was found carrying and wearing gold jewellery concealed inside her purse and beneath her garments, according to Customs officials.
The jewellery included bracelets, a bangle, necklaces, chains, an anklet and gold earrings.
The recovered gold comprised 70.18 grams of 999-purity gold, equivalent to 24 carat, and 149.25 grams of 750-purity gold, equivalent to 18 carat.
The total quantity of 219.43 grams was assessed to have a market value of Rs 28,87,473.
The gold was seized under the provisions of the Customs Act, 1962.
Customs officials also examined the baggage of the male passenger travelling with the woman.
The baggage was found to contain undeclared goods, including face bleach cream, cold relief oil, readymade garments, two laptops and a mobile phone.
The estimated market value of these goods was around Rs 3.50 lakh, and they too were seized under the Customs Act.
The latest seizure comes amid a series of gold-smuggling interceptions at Ahmedabad airport involving passengers arriving from Gulf destinations.
On July 30, Customs officials intercepted a woman arriving from Dubai and seized more than 240 grams of 24-carat gold jewellery worth around Rs 35.5 lakh.
The jewellery, including four bangles and a chain with a pendant, was reportedly being worn by the passenger and was not supported by the required documentation.
In another case, Customs officials seized 600.24 grams of gold worth around Rs 60 lakh from a passenger arriving from Sharjah.
The gold had been fashioned into small hooks and was concealed in two trolley bags.
The recovered items were made of 18-carat and 14-carat gold, according to Customs officials.
In a separate and much larger seizure that month, Ahmedabad Customs recovered 24 foreign-origin gold biscuits weighing 2,799.3 grams and valued at more than Rs 4.26 crore from the lavatory speaker box of an IndiGo aircraft that had arrived from Dubai.
In the latest case, Customs officials said further investigation is underway.
–IANS
mys/khz