In a day-long operation, a team from the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) carried out a search in the Customs wing at the Tiruchi International Airport on Friday.
Though some unaccounted money was said to have been seized there was no official word on this.
The eight-member team of the investigating agency headed by an officer in the rank of a Deputy Superintendent of Police went into the new terminal building at around 1.40 a.m. after arrival of a couple of overseas flights at the airport.
Sources said the team had camped outside the terminal building to detect possible duty evasion by some passengers for the goods they had brought along with them, before launching their action.
Upon entering the airport, the CBI team cordoned off the Customs area and conducted enquiries with the officials on duty, besides carrying out searches on the premises for several hours.
During the searches that lasted over six hours, the CBI team checked the rest room, cup board and drawers in the Customs area and is said to have detected some unauthorised money, the sources said.
The CBI team is said to have mounted surveillance over the past few days, reportedly in the wake of complaints against some Customs officials before launching their operation in the early hours on Friday.
The team’s operation apparently centered on checking complaints of corrupt practices by way of under valuation of customs duty for the goods brought by passengers arriving by overseas flights and clandestine clearance of imported goods without payment of duty, the sources said.
A CBI team later visited the residences of few airport Customs officials in the city and conducted searches there as well.
The action comes a month after a vigilance team of the Office the Commissioner of Customs inspected the Customs wing at the airport. The vigilance team had then verified the cash register and records maintained for collection of duty besides cash declaration register.
Though some unaccounted money was said to have been seized there was no official word on this
