Custom officials at the Ahmedabad airport have seized over 2.7 kilogram of gold concealed inside the lavatory of an aircraft.
The incident occurred on board an IndiGo flight 6E-1478, which arrived at the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International (SVPI) Airport in Ahmedabad from Dubai.
The seizure was made after Custom officials carried out a detailed search with the help of aircraft engineers.
The gold was concealed in black plastic tape which was concealed inside the speaker box located in the front lavatory of the aircraft, according to ANI news agency.
The 24 gold biscuits were 24-carat and weigh a total of 2,799.3 grams. The worth of gold in the Indian market is valued at around ₹4.26 crore.
A video surfaced showing Custom officials detaching wall-mounted speaker box and taking out gold biscuits neatly wrapped in black tape. Another video showed officials ripping the packaged plastic tape and taking out gold bars.
Officials said the manner of concealment suggested that the gold was concealed with the intention of smuggling it into India. The seized gold has been classified as unclaimed and confiscated under the Customs Act, 1962.
“The manner of concealment indicates that the gold was concealed by an unknown person with the intention of smuggling it into India in violation of the provisions of the Customs Act, 1962. As no person came forward to claim the legal ownership of the seized gold, it was seized as unclaimed under the relevant provisions of the Customs Act, 1962,” ANI cited Custom officials as saying.
Ahmedabad Customs has now launched a detailed investigation into the seizure.
Source: Hindustan Times
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