MUMBAI: Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (CSIA) is again countering several incidents of gold smuggling from recent years, and in the series Airport officials have recently confiscated gold worth over 2 Crores in the previous days
In the latest of the hauls, officials seized gold metal plate worth Rs 52 lakhs from a Sri Lankan national who arrived at the airport from Madagascar via Mauritius. Upon suspicion, the passenger was intercepted by the officials. While checking his baggage, officials found a manual iron box, whose inner base was made of gold plate weighing nearly two kilograms. The passenger, identified as Mohammed Hilmy, was detained for further investigations.
During this week, the Customs officials have foiled several gold smuggling attempts at the airport. Firstly, a smuggler was caught red-handed while trying to drop 17 gold bars weighing ten tolas each into airport toilet dustbin. The gold worth nearly Rs 50 lakhs was recovered on the spot.
The officials also recovered six gold bars from a passenger who possessed a fake passport in addition to the original one. The smuggler was later handed over to the Bureau of Immigration for further questioning. Also, 13 gold bars worth nearly 80 lakh were seized from a British passport holder who reached the airport from Hong Kong. In another incident, four gold bars worth Rs 12 lakh were recovered from an Indian national travelling from Sharjah.
According to Milind Lanjewar, Additional Customs Commissioner at the airport, the total gold seized by Airport Customs officials at the Mumbai CSIA during calendar year 2014 had set new record by touching one ton. Gold seizure at the airport has already exceeded 750 kilograms during the current financial year, he noted.
