The passengers arrived at Terminal 3 of the Delhi Airport from Tashkent (Representational)
Customs officials in Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport have arrested eight passengers after they were found concealing gold worth Rs 2.92 crore in a baggage trolley.
A senior Customs official told that it's a new modus operandi to smuggle gold by concealing it in baggage trolleys available at the airport. The operation was carried out based on intelligence inputs.
In a statement, the Customs said that officers at the IGI airport have booked a case of smuggling of gold on August 15 on the basis of profiling of eight Uzbekistan nationals, who arrived from Tashkent to Delhi by Flight No HY 421 at Terminal 3 of Delhi Airport.
"The arrested passengers were Uzbekistan nationals that include five men and three women passengers. They all have been arrested. The case is under investigation to find out the place of delivery of smuggled gold," the official said.
They were intercepted after they had crossed the Green Channel and were approaching the exit gate of the International Arrival Hall. Subsequently, 50 gold chains had a total weight of 5,319 grams, which were found concealed in a baggage trolley by a group of eight foreign passengers in a hollow metal box pasted on the back panel of the baggage trolley.
The 50 gold chains weighing 5,319 grams valued at Rs 2.92 crore were recovered. In view of the above, the recovered gold has been seized under section 110 of the Customs Act, 1962. The passengers have been placed under arrest in terms of section 104 of the Customs Act, 1962.
Further investigation is under progress.
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