Customs officials at Ahmedabad’s Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport have foiled a sophisticated gold smuggling attempt after recovering gold worth more than Rs 4.26 crore concealed inside a speaker box installed in an aircraft lavatory. The seizure was made on Friday (june 12) during a detailed inspection of IndiGo flight 6E-1478, which had arrived from Dubai.
Acting on specific intelligence, customs officers conducted a thorough search of the aircraft with assistance from engineers. During the inspection, officials discovered two pouches wrapped in black plastic tape hidden inside a wall-mounted speaker box used for inflight announcements in the front lavatory.
After dismantling the speaker unit, officers recovered the concealed packets lodged behind the audio components.
24 Gold Biscuits Worth Rs 4.26 Crore Seized
Inside the pouches, authorities found 24 gold biscuits of foreign origin.
“On examination, the pouches were found to contain 24 gold biscuits of 999.0 purity (24 carat) with a combined weight of 2,799.3 grams. The gold was valued at Rs 4,26,89,325 in the domestic market,” officials said.
The seized gold weighed nearly 2.8 kilograms and was classified as unclaimed.
Investigators suspect the gold was hidden inside the aircraft’s lavatory structure to be collected later by a domestic passenger or a member of the ground staff after the flight landed.
However, no individual came forward to claim the consignment, leading officials to believe the carrier may have abandoned the operation after sensing heightened security checks.
The gold has been confiscated under the provisions of the Customs Act, 1962, and Ahmedabad Customs has launched a detailed investigation to identify those involved in the smuggling attempt.
(With input From Agencies)