BENGALURU: The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has recently carried out multiple high-value seizures at the Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru.
Foreign currency, gold, and cocaine worth over Rs 67 crore were confiscated from passengers at Terminal 2, leading to the arrest of several smugglers.
On December 30, DRI officials intercepted an Indian passenger travelling to Dubai and seized US dollars equivalent to Rs 1.71 crore, according to a reliable source.
“A week earlier, on December 27, we seized 2.5 kg of cocaine worth roughly Rs 25 crore. It was being smuggled by an Ethiopian who had arrived in Bengaluru on an Ethiopian Airlines flight,” the source said.
Earlier in the month, on December 8, nearly 3 kg of gold valued at Rs 2.4 crore was seized from three Sri Lankan passengers arriving from Colombo. “They had concealed it in paste form in their rectums,” the source added.
The most valuable seizure, however, occurred on November 13, when cocaine worth approximately Rs 38 crore was confiscated. The contraband, weighing 3.8 kg, had been concealed in the sides of ladies' bags.
"The four bags, all empty, were checked by a lady from Kenya. The sides of these bags were opened, and the cocaine, stitched into them, was discovered. She smuggled the bags from Kenya to Doha and then travelled to Bengaluru on flight QR 572,” the source explained.
All individuals involved in these incidents have been arrested under the Customs Act or the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, another source confirmed.