Despite stringent action and surveillance, the Calicut International Airport has continued to be a conduit for smuggling gold even during the COVID-19-imposed flight restrictions.
Sources said that the latest incident involving the Ramanattukara accident and the seizures of gold at the airport revealed that Dubai -based syndicates operated the intricate gold smuggling ring through a network across north Kerala.
Gold smugglers with well-trenched moles get political patronage as well. "And this is not an unknown secret. Significantly smuggling syndicates have been operating in Mangalore and Kannur airports," officials said.
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On Monday, the Air Intelligence Unit of the Customs had seized 2.33 kg of gold worth ₹1.11 crore from Muhammad Shafeeque Melethil of Moorkkanad in Malappuram district. The gold was concealed inside a new coffee maker machine. Incidentally, the Customs officers, along with officials of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, had also made two seizures of gold weighing 4.8 kg and 2.47 kg totally worth ₹2.95 crore on Sunday.
Nearly 138 kgs of gold was seized and 287 cases were registered in 2020. This year till June 15, the gold seized was 80 kg. About 60 cases were registered in connection with these seizures. As per rules, a passenger would be arrested if the value of the gold kept in possession was above ₹20 lakh, officials said.
The sources said that the smuggling of gold thrived whether the policies on import duties changed or not. In 2019, the Centre raised import duty on gold to 12.55% from 10% but in February this year, the import duty was slashed to 7.5 % but imposed a 2.5 % cess that would effectively attract 10.75% tax. "Even then, a profit of ₹4.5-5 lakh can be made for a kg of gold smuggled into the country,” the sources said.
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Racketeers engage carriers individually or those flying in groups to smuggle gold through the airport. Detections have revealed that agents or their carriers employ innovative methods to bring in contraband from abroad. "About 60% of the gold seized are in compound form,” an official said.
From hiding the gold in specially designed clothes to tampered electronic devices, cutlery and footwear, carriers now resort to concealing gold pieces inside the rectum.
To slip by Customs, carriers use the green channel and also take drugs to circumvent visible symptoms when concealing the gold inside the rectum. Usually, eyes can become swollen and cause redness due to this, sources said.