Hyderabad customs officials have seized smuggled gold weighing 1.93 kg valued at Rs 1.17 crore and over 62,000 cigarette sticks in separate cases at the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA), PTI reported.
In the first case, customs officials seized 1,399 grams of smuggled gold in the form of bars, valued at Rs 84.8 lakh, from a passenger arriving from Dubai. Upon investigation, it was discovered that the gold was intended to be taken out of the airport by an airport staff member. Customs authorities have arrested both the individuals involved.
In the second case, 527 grams of smuggled gold worth Rs 31.8 lakh was recovered from a passenger arriving from Jeddah. The gold, in the form of capsules, was concealed in the person's rectum.
"The gold was concealed in the rectum of the person in the form of two capsules. We also seized 62,400 smuggled cigarette sticks from two passengers who arrived from Bangkok and Dubai," said the official.
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Last week, customs officials at Rajiv Gandhi Airport seized heroin worth Rs 14.2 crore from an African woman who arrived from Nairobi. The passenger, a Burundi citizen, who arrived on July 2 aboard an Air Arabia Airways flight, was identified and intercepted based on passenger profiling and careful observation, officials said.
The passenger, aged around 43, was arrested under the NDPS Act, 1985, and subsequently sent to judicial custody by a court.
During the examination of her baggage, officials discovered 2,027 grams of heroin concealed within various items. The officials found that eight traditional African dresses, a handbag, and three soaps in her baggage appeared to be heavier than normal, a statement said.
While opening of the side walls and layers of the dresses and handbag, plastic packets containing heroin were found.