Tajikistan woman held for gold smuggling

A woman from Tajikistan has been arrested for allegedly trying to smuggle in gold worth Rs 85 lakh at the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA). The accused was intercepted by the customs officials after her arrival from Dushanbe.

“She was carrying gold in raw form in her purse. On detailed examination of her baggage, we recovered the yellow metal,” Vinayak Azaad, additional commissioner of customs at the airport, said. “The gold weighing 2.7 kg has been seized and the passenger arrested on Saturday. The value of the gold is assessed to be around Rs 85.13 lakh. Tajikistan’s embassy here has been informed about the arrest of the accused,” he added.

Sources said smugglers use the duty-free shops at the airport to sneak gold into the country.

On May 20 this year, a man was arrested at the IGIA for allegedly trying to smuggle in gold worth Rs 35 lakh. The accused was intercepted by customs officials after his arrival from Mumbai. The accused had allegedly concealed over one kg gold in his rectum. Five pieces of gold weighing 1.170 kg were recovered from the passenger.