THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Air intelligence unit of Trivandrum International Airport on Saturday foiled a gold smuggling attempt with the seizure of gold biscuits weighing 1.93 kg valued around Rs 60 lakh. 17 gold biscuits were seized from the socks of two passengers hailing from Alappuzha. They have been arrested and the investigation is on to find out the source of the consignment, officials said. According to customs officers, it is one of the major gold seizures in recent times.
The seizure took place around 3.30 am at the entrance of the airport when the passengers landed from Muscat in Jet Airways. When they tried to cross the door frame which is sensitive to metals, the alarm sounded and the officers stationed at the spot detained them. Subsequently, the customs took them into custody and recovered the gold in the form of biscuits concealed in the socks.
One man had 9 biscuits concealed while the other had 8 biscuits. Upon interrogation, they revealed they were just carriers.
The officers did not reveal the identity of the accused. A case has been registered under the Customs Act 1961 and an investigation is underway, said T S Sanjeev, Intelligence Superintendent. The seizure was led by Pradeep Kumar, Additional Customs Commissioner with the support of Sanjeev, intelligence superintendents, S Seetharaman and C Gopiraj and Intelligence inspector Sunil.
Ganja seized from passenger
T’Puram:A 30-year-old passenger was arrested by the Railway Police for allegedly possessing a packet of ganja at the Parassala railway station on Saturday. The arrested is Saheer, of Nedumangad. According to the railway police, the contraband was seized around 8 am after finding the passenger under suspicious circumstances on the platform.
The passenger said the substance was being taken from Theni to Thiruvananthapuram for sale. He was produced before the magistrate and remanded in judicial custody.