Mumbai: Flyer arrested with Rs 6.7 crore gold bars

MUMBAI: In one of the biggest gold seizures this year, the city’s customs department on Tuesday arrested a passenger arriving from Dubai with 22kg of smuggled bars worth Rs 6.7 crore at Mumbai international airport. Officials later recovered Rs 1.5 crore from the residence of the passenger identified as Joginder Singh (64). The gold was concealed in special pouches in his innerwear.
Based on passenger profiling, the officials intercepted Singh when he arrived from Dubai. As he walked through the green channel, he was stopped by customs officials who searched him. They said from Singh’s appearance, no one would have suspected that he was carrying a huge quantity of gold.
“We detained him and carried out his personal search, which resulted in the recovery of 44 gold bars, each weighing 500 gram and totalling 22kg, which were cleverly concealed on his body,” said an official.
Singh, a resident of Koperkhairane in Navi Mumbai, reportedly told officials that he had sustained losses in his automobiles spare parts business and therefore wanted to make money quickly. Singh said he was a carrier, or a person who agrees to smuggle gold on payment of a commission. “We do not believe this. He has made at least four foreign trips since December and we strongly suspect that he himself was a smuggler and not just a carrier,” said an official.
Officials raided his residence and recovered Rs 1.5 crore in cash. During interrogation, Singh reportedly admitted that the cash was proceeds from gold smuggling. “It is not clear who gave him the idea of smuggling gold from Dubai. Singh himself is suspected to have invested in the smuggling business and directly selling to the jewellers.”
Singh, who has been placed under arrest, will be produced before the court on Thursday.