4 passengers held, gold worth Rs 74 lakh seized at KIA

Four passengers were caught smuggling gold into the Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) in separate cases last week. The Air Intelligence Unit (AIU) of the Bengaluru customs seized 1,875.75 grams of gold worth Rs 74.46 lakh from them.

On November 1, officials detained two men from Mysuru, who flew into Bengaluru from Bangkok via Kolkata by flight number 6E-076. A detailed examination of their baggage revealed six thin mercury-coated gold rods and four small semi-circular mercury-coated gold rings concealed in plastic boxes. The gold weighed 751.38 grams and was worth about Rs 29.99 lakh.

The next day, sleuths intercepted two residents of Thane, Maharashtra, who arrived at the KIA from Muscat via Hyderabad by flight number AI 978. Their detailed body scanning showed they had concealed gold paste in their rectum. When questioned, they claimed that they had picked up the gold left behind in the toilet by someone else during the international leg of the flight. The gold weighed 1,124.37 grams and was worth about Rs 44.47 lakh.