146 gms gold worth Rs 7.45 lakh seized from Kozhikode Airport

As per reports, the gold was hidden inside the battery case of an emergency lamp
Gold smuggling
Gold smuggling
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The Kozhikode Air Intelligence Unit (AIU) seized 146 grams of 24-carat gold, worth Rs 7.45 lakh, and 8,000 sticks of cigarettes worth Rs 32,000 from a passenger who arrived in Kerala from Dubai. On August 23, AIU Calicut also seized 1.699 kg of gold worth Rs 86.69 lakh from a passenger who came by flight SG 9741 from Riyadh. 

According to the information released by an official of the Commissionerate of Customs (Preventive), the gold seized from the latter was concealed inside the battery case of an emergency lamp. The case is being probed further. 

Earlier this month, the Air Intelligence Units (AIU) of two airports in Kerala — Calicut and Trivandrum — had seized gold worth lakhs of rupees that was smuggled by five passengers from Gulf countries. While the gold in Thiruvananthapuram was hidden in the frame of passengers’ suitcases in the shape of thin wires, the gold at Calicut airport was being smuggled as gold compounds resembling paste, while the rest was worn as ornaments by the passengers.

Sunday’s seizure comes in the wake of a sensational gold smuggling case that has turned into a political controversy in Kerala. On July 5, the Customs officials seized 30 kilograms of gold worth Rs 13.5 crore from air cargo addressed to an officer of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Consulate which was classified as diplomatic baggage from the Thiruvananthapuram International Airport.  

PS Sarith, a former employee of the UAE Consulate, was first arrested over allegations of aiding the smuggling of gold. Swapna Suresh, another former employee of the consulate and Sandeep Nair were also subsequently named in the case and arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) from Bengaluru. 

The case has created a political storm in Kerala after reports of key accused in the case allegedly having connections with the Kerala Chief Minister’s then Principal Secretary M Sivasankar. He was subsequently removed from the position and the post of IT Secretary following the allegations. He has also been questioned by both the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the NIA in connection with the case. 

The case of smuggling of gold worth more than Rs 100 crore through diplomatic baggage is currently being investigated by multiple agencies including the NIA, ED and the Customs. 

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