Customs officials seize drones, iPhone 16 Pro Max, gold at Delhi airport

New Delhi: Customs officials have seized four drones, six iPhone 16 Pro Max devices and around 2 kilograms of gold in separate cases at the Indira Gandhi International Airport here, the department said on Monday.

On seizure of the drones and phones, it said an Indian passenger arriving from Dubai on March 28 was intercepted based on spot profiling at the exit of the green channel at Terminal 3.

Suspicious images were observed during X-ray screening of his baggage.

"No beep was recorded during screening through the DFMD (Door Frame Metal Detector). Subsequent examination of the baggage led to the recovery of eight DJI Mini 4 Pro Drones and six Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max," the customs department said in an X post.

The recovered goods were found concealed and were of commercial quantity, the customs department said, adding that further investigation is being carried out to determine the intended use and potential violations under the Customs Act.

On the gold smuggling cases, it said an Indian passenger was intercepted after his arrival from Bangkok the same day. Here too, suspicious images were found during the X-ray screening, while the metal detector did not beep.

"A subsequent examination of the baggage led to the recovery of two pouches containing yellow-coloured chemical paste suspected to be gold, with a total gross weight of 282 grams including packaging material, concealed inside a pair of shoes," the customs said.

In another case, a man was arrested for smuggling 1.1 kg of foreign-origin gold worth Rs 94 lakh on April 5.

After disembarkation, the passenger arriving from Kochi, on suspicion of smuggling gold, was brought to the Office of Preventive Customs (shift) at the international arrival hall of Terminal 3.

During subsequent search, the customs officers found four blue and two green pouches containing gold of foreign origin in paste form.

"Gold weighing 1,105 grams was extracted from the said gold paste pouches. The tariff value of this gold is Rs 94,16,191. The passenger admitted to be involved in possession, carrying, handling and smuggling of the gold," the department stated.

In a third case, a passenger was intercepted on his arrival from Kolkata on April 4.

"A detailed search led to the recovery of eight mercury-coated hollow cylindrical rods, two mercury-coated rings, and one mercury-coated rod, ingeniously concealed inside the wheels of roller skates and the hollow metallic rod of a trolley bag. The total weight of the recovered material is 488 grams. After melting, 473 grams of gold was recovered," said another post by the customs on X.

Further investigation is underway to ascertain the source, purpose and end-use of the recovered items, the customs said.