KOCHI: The Cochin Customs has announced a reward of Rs 10,000 to anybody who gives substantial information helpful of arresting Nibu Mathew, a Kochi native, who was instrumental in connecting the Irish gold carrier arrested a few weeks ago with the smuggling racket involved in the trade here.
According to Customs officials, Nibu went into hiding after the Customs recorded the arrest of Edwin Andrews of Ireland with 10 kg of gold at the Cochin airport on June 14. Edwin who was arrested here confessed to the officials that he had smuggled large quantity of gold into the state from Dubai at least 10 times before he was caught.
He used to contact Nibu over phone when he reached here with the contraband. He, then, meets Edwin in person and takes the bullion into his custody. Nibu had fled to a safe hide-out in Bangalore soon after Edwin’s arrest and switched his camps at regular intervals in order to avoid being tracked by enforcement agencies.
However, though he landed in the custody of Karanataka Crime Branch, in the meantime, along with his friend, an accused in connection with red-sander smuggling, the Customs couldn’t arrest him in time and he escaped from there after being released on bail. According to the credible information, he has now shifted to Kerala and is staying here in a hideout with the help of his friends, the officials said.
Edwin was arrested at the Cochin Airport on July 14 with 10 kg of gold, valued approximately at Rs 2.50 crores in the open market. Officials suspect he had smuggled in around 100 kg of gold into the state on business visa.
