Hyderabad: In one of the biggest hauls on a single day, Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) officials from Hyderabad, Vijayawada and Nellore seized a total of 31.5 kg gold in separate operations. In three of the cases, the gold was headed to Warangal. The total value of the seizure was put at Rs 13.3 crore.
In all instances, the gold was seized under the Customs Act, 1962.
The DRI stated that in the three cases, the accused admitted that they had carried cash to Chennai, purchased the smuggled gold at Chennai and were travelling back to Warangal to hand it over to the mastermind at Waran-gal. A total of 20.8 kg of gold was headed for Warangal and the rest for Hyderabad.
They admitted that the gold bars purchased by them were made out of smuggled foreign origin gold and they did not have documents to prove legal import into the country.
At about 5 am on Sunday, DRI-Hyderabad officers intercepted three passengers travelling from Chennai to the city in the Chennai-Hyderabad Superfast Express at Secunderabad railway station and seized 10,709.44 grams gold worth Rs 4.53 crore in the market. The purchaser was said to be based in Hyderabad.
In another instance, on February 1 at 7 pm the Hyderabad and Vijayawada units of the DRI intercepted four passengers travelling from Chennai to Warangal by an TSRTC bus at Kanakadurga Varadhi bus stop in Vijayawada.
They were found carrying the yellow metal in packets concealed inside their clothing. Officers seized 6,470 grams of gold worth Rs 2.74 crore.
Also on Saturday, DRI-Vijayawada unit officers intercepted three passengers travelling from Chennai to Warangal in GT Express at Vijayawada railway station at about 1.30 am at seized 7,077 grams of gold valued at Rs 2.99 crore in the open market.
At midnight of January 31, DRI-Nellore officers intercepted three passengers travelling from Chennai to Warangal in the Jaipur Superfast Express at Vijayawada.
They were carrying 7,228 grams of gold worth `3.05 crore in packets concealed inside their bags.
All the accused were arrested and DRI officials are pursuing investigations to trace the purchaser of the yellow metal.
