Customs Seizes Gold Worth Rs.3 cr from Myanmar Couple at Chennai Airport
Their claims of having arrived for medical treatment in Chennai, however, raised suspicion when they were unable to produce proper documents or explain the purpose of their visit satisfactorily
CHENNAI: The Customs officials at Chennai airport have arrested a Myanmar couple and seized 1.970 kg of 24-carat gold bars valued at around Rs 3 crore, concealed inside their rectums after they arrived from Bangkok on a medical visa.
The couple, aged over 40, had travelled from Yangon to Thailand before arriving in Chennai on a private passenger flight early on Saturday.
Their claims of having arrived for medical treatment in Chennai, however, raised suspicion when they were unable to produce proper documents or explain the purpose of their visit satisfactorily.
The customs officials subsequently subjected their baggage to a detailed search, but found nothing incriminating. As their suspicion persisted, the couple were taken separately to examination rooms and subjected to a thorough personal search, including by women officers in the case of the lady.
During the examination, Customs officials detected concealed packages in the rectum of both passengers. On opening the packages, officials found gold bars of 24-carat purity. The gold recovered from the couple weighed 1.970 kg and had an international market value of Rs3 crore, according to Customs officials. The gold was seized and both passengers were arrested.
During interrogation, the officials suspect that the couple were being used as carriers by an international gold-smuggling syndicate. Investigators are probing whether the couple deliberately travelled on medical visas in the belief that passengers claiming to be coming to Chennai for medical treatment would attract less suspicion from Customs officials.
Officials are also investigating the route taken by the couple from Yangon to Bangkok and subsequently to Chennai, as well as the possible handlers and recipients involved in the alleged smuggling attempt.
The seizure comes amid renewed concern over gold smuggling through Chennai airport. Customs officials suspect that the increase in the effective import duty on gold to 15 per cent may have made smuggling more attractive to international networks.
Further investigation is under way to identify the members of the international syndicate allegedly behind the latest attempt and determine whether the Myanmar couple had made similar trips previously.