Monday, February 14, 2022

Man who’s part of gang that smuggled 4,500kg gold held

Mumbai: The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence has arrested a Bengaluru resident for his alleged involvement in aiding and abetting an inter-state gold smuggling racket where the gang was importing gold in the guise of brass scrap through various ports in the country.

The DRI’s Mumbai unit on Friday took custody of 43-year old Bengaluru resident, Raees Ahmed Ikkeri, after he was arrested on February 5 at the Bengaluru international airport. The DRI had kept him on Lookout Circular (LOC) since his name surfaced in the gold smuggling syndicate in 2019.

DRI Mumbai is probing a 2019 gold smuggling case where the syndicate smuggled huge quantities of gold declaring them as brass scrap by a kingpin identified as Nisar Aliyar. Aliyar was smuggling gold from the UAE to India through Mundra Port.

The officer said that the gold was being smuggled in the shape of circular disks or rods and clandestinely coloured black to camouflage the same with the brass scrap.

Following a specific intelligence tip-off, the agency had in March and April 2019 seized 170 kg of smuggled gold and arrested around 20 persons. Shoeb Zaradarwala, Abdul Zarodarwala, Shaikh Ahad were among a few of the key persons who had been arrested in the case.

During the course of investigations it transpired that the gang was actively involved since 2017 and had smuggled 4,522 kgs of gold worth Rs 1,473 crores with similar modus operandi.

Shoeb Zarodarwala told officials that he had smuggled around 100 kg of gold to one Raju alias Manoj Jain. Jain, in turn, said that he used to buy gold from Raees Ahmed and gave his contact number. Raees Ahmed was introduced to him by Shoeb Zarodarwala.

14/02/22 Ahmed Ali/Times of India

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