CHENNAI: Sleuths from the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) seized gold worth Rs 2.8 crores from three passengers who landed at the Chennai airport on Wednesday.
The officials received a tip-off that passengers travelling on a domestic flight from Mumbai were smuggling gold in huge quantities to Chennai. Following the information, the DRI team rushed to the airport around midnight and began monitoring the passengers who came from Mumbai and Pune.
Early on Wednesday morning, the officials intercepted a group of six passengers who had returned from Mumbai. Based on suspicion that they were hiding something, they checked their luggage. However, there was nothing concealed in their baggage.
As their suspicions remained, the group was taken for a personal search and the officials found that three of them had gold in paste form hidden inside their clothes. The DRI recovered and seized 3.5 kg of gold valued at Rs 2.8 crores from the people, who were arrested and taken for further questioning.
During investigation, they found that the passengers had smuggled the gold from Dubai and reached Mumbai, where they managed to evade Customs. They then travelled as domestic passengers to Chennai to avoid Customs checks. The officers are inquiring to nab the people behind the smuggling racket.