Abu Dhabi: An Indian passenger from Abu Dhabi was caught at the Chennai International Airport on October 16 attempting to smuggle 1.8kg of gold biscuits, an official has said.
Speaking to XPRESS, a senior official at the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence in Chennai said Indian S.A. arrived on an Etihad flight from Abu Dhabi on Sunday morning carrying a bag containing 16 gold bars.
“Each gold bar weighed more than 100 grams and the total weight was above 1.8kg,” said the official.
Accomplices nabbed
The official said two ground staff in Chennai who were helping the passenger to get the bag out of the airport were also arrested. “The two staff members were under our surveillance following a tip-off and we arrested the trio while the passenger was handing over the gold to them,” said the official. S.A. has been released on bail and the gold bars have been confiscated, said the official.
India has imposed a 10 per cent duty on imports of the yellow metal. As per the revised gold allowance in 2015, male passengers can only carry gold worth Rs50,000 (Dh2,725) and women, up to Rs100,000 (Dh5,450).
This has resulted in a spike in gold smuggling, especially from the Gulf countries where expats are used to carrying big amounts of jewellery while travelling to India for holidays or to attend weddings and other functions.
