Hyderabad: The customs department at RGI Airport has acquired tracker software that can profile suspected smugglers.
Sources said that the increasing smuggling of gold made the customs install the software which is linked to the database of all flight operators and the immigration department.
A source said, “Frequent fliers to and from countries from where smuggling is carried out, and who go for short trips are profiled automatically. Usually smugglers won't stay for long in the Gulf and South East Asia as it would cost them more. They all work for commissions. So they are frequent fliers and stay only for short periods. The customs recently caught several people who were smuggling gold.”
On January 17 the Air Intelligence Unit identified passenger Thawani Vijay Gul flying from Jeddah to Mumbai via Hyderabad and seized 1.19 kg of gold he was trying to smuggle in his rectum. On January 1, three persons were held for smuggling 1.2 kg gold.
Man from Muscat caught with gold
The customs department seized gold worth Rs 13.64 lakh on Thursday from a passenger who arrived from Muscat by Oman Airlines.
The gold seized from the passenger on Thursday.
RGIA airport sources said, “The passenger arrived by flight number WY 235. He concealed the gold as foils in between the layers of a corrugated box.”
