Bengaluru: In an unusual twist of events at Kempegowda International Airport here on Thursday night, a gang of 18 smugglers from Tamil Nadu landed in Customs net with gold paste in their rectums. The gang members flew down from the Gulf in two flights and were carrying nearly 5kg of gold worth Rs 2.4 crore on their bodies. The men were booked for Customs duty evasion and the gold seized.
Officers of the Air Intelligence Unit (AIU) of Bengaluru Customs had a tough time after the gang of seasoned smugglers, with a strong base in Tamil Nadu, touched down at KIA pretending to be Indians returning home from the Gulf.
“One man flew down from Dubai, while the 17 others touched down from Sharjah. The gang of 18 attempted to pass security checks with smuggled gold, hoping that they would outnumber the Customs officials on duty. Aware of the situation, our team intercepted each of the smugglers, who were all Indian passport holders and from Tamil Nadu,” an investigating officer said.
Customs sleuths rounded up all 18 smugglers, who have a history of numerous visits to the Gulf for the purpose of smuggling. The suspects surrendered the gold hidden in paste form in capsules made of duct tape.
09/10/21 Petlee Peter/Times of India
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