KOCHI: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has arrested a Malappuram native who had absconded after being named an accused in the 2020 Thiruvananthapuram gold smuggling case in which diplomatic baggage was used to illegally send gold from the UAE. Ramzan Parancherry alias Sabu Pullara, 40, who is the 34th accused in the case, was in the UAE and did not return to India after the NIA arraigned him.
On February 20, he arrived at one of the airports in Kerala and was intercepted by the immigration department as the NIA had issued a lookout circular against him in 2020. Subsequently, the NIA took him into custody and recorded his arrest. On March 1, a court in Kochi granted the custody of Ramzan to the NIA for four days. He will be produced before the court again when NIA custody ends on Tuesday.
According to NIA sources, Ramzan was part of the group that sent gold from the UAE using diplomatic baggage addressed to the UAE consulate in Thiruvananthapuram. “His arrest is key to getting information about the other accused holed up in the UAE. Also, the interrogation of the accused will provide further information about the modus operandi of the group in the UAE and their funding,” a source said.
There are around 35 accused in the case, with the central agency having arrested around 25 persons so far. The gold concealed in the diplomatic baggage arrived at the Thiruvananthapuram airport on June 30 and it was opened on July 5. A total of 166 kg of gold was sent through the channel on 21 occasions since November 2019.