NIA conducts searches at 4 locations in Assam and Maharashtra in Delhi gold smuggling case

The NIA on Thursday conducted searches at four locations in Assam’s Guwahati and Maharashtra’s Sangli in connection with the seizure of 83 kgs of gold worth over Rs 42 crore at New Delhi railway station from eight persons who have links in Myanmar and Nepal, an official said.

The locations are the premises of the accused and their handlers from where they used to give effect to the commission of crime, a spokesperson of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) said.

During the searches, incriminating documents and electronic devices containing details of suspicious transactions as well as of the persons involved in the crime, who also have linkages abroad including in Myanmar and Nepal, were seized, the official of the premier investigation agency said.

The NIA registered the case on September 16 following the seizure of 83.621 kgs of smuggled gold bars with a market value of Rs 42.89 crore at the New Delhi railway station on August 28 from the possession eight persons, the spokesperson said.

The accused had collected the consignment from Guwahati for its delivery at New Delhi on the directions of their handlers who are suspected to have sourced the smuggled material from Myanmar, Nepal and Bhutan, the NIA official said, adding that further investigation was underway.