An air passenger, who was trying to smuggle in 843 grams of gold paste to Hyderabad from Sharjah, was arrested by Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) officials at the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA) in Shamshabad.
The accused passenger’s associate, who was waiting at the arrival gate for delivery of the contraband, was also arrested.
A total of 652.95 grams of gold valued at ₹24.61 lakh, was extracted from the paste, which was concealed in his customised jeans.
“The paste was hidden and stitched in the waist and bottom hem of the jeans he was wearing,” a DRI official said.
Based on specific intelligence, the officials intercepted the flyer, who arrived by Indigo flight No. 6E 1406 on Monday evening.
He was supposed to hand over the gold to the receiver who was waiting outside the airport.
“He was carrying the contraband on the request of his friend and to avoid Customs check, the gold was concealed in his jeans,” the official said, adding that the accused is a native of Lucknow.
