NEW DELHI: Indications of smugglers using foreign nationals as gold carriers seem to be emerging with the arrest of an Irish national with 10 kilos of gold.
The fact that Edwin Andrews had flown to Kochi on three occasions earlier in connection with gold smuggling has come as a shocker to the Customs department, which is not ruling out a likely spin-off in the trail of Gulf-based rackets smuggling gold to Kerala.
The department, however, had prior information about the possibility of smuggling rackets shifting their focus from frequent travellers from Kerala to a new batch of carriers.
“We have almost plugged the conventional routes of smuggling and have been working on the assumption of them resorting to new batch of carriers. However, this is the first time that a European is being caught in Kerala in this connection’’, said a senior official.
During interrogation, the person named a few, who have been under the Custom’s radar for sometime now. Further, he also explained in detail about the new trend of foreigners falling for the lure of easy money offered by these smuggling rackets.
K.N. Raghavan, Commissioner of Customs in Kochi described the instance as the first time that a European was being caught for gold smuggling at Indian airports.
“The deployment of a European as carrier might have been on the assumption that he would easily clear the Customs checks at the airport. This is because a large number of foreigners are landing at different airports in India on business visas’’, he explained.
Incidentally, the arrest of Edwin is the second such arrest being made at the international airport here this year.
In February this year, a Sri Lankan national, identified as Muhammad Suwair, was arrested with 500 grams of gold in his abdomen.
Gold smuggling aside, the Customs had also arrested foreign nationals on smuggling charges here.
Two Japanese nationals Murayi Yojka and Shibi Ottawa were apprehended on June 21 while attempting to transport a collection of exotic species in their baggage via Colombo.
Last December, the agency arrested Cellia Dhomingo, a Zimbabwean with 20 kg of drug ephedrine while on her way to Qatar.
In November 2013, the sleuths arrested six Chinese nationals in two separate instances while attempting to transport about 200 Kg of red sanders.
