‘Frequent flier’ in DRI net, gold worth Rs 2.5 cr seized

Officials seized the gold from the toilet of Air India’s Coimbatore–Chennai–Delhi flight on Monday. They had zeroed in on the alleged smuggler, Tajudeen (38) from Chennai, who was flying on the same aircraft. Besides him, four persons were detained for questioning. 

The DRI operation came after receiving a tip-off that gold was being smuggled on the Dubai–Chennai flight early on Monday morning. 

According to DRI sources, Tajudeen, a passenger on the flight, had hidden the gold inside the flush tank of the toilet after he received an SMS warning him about the presence of DRI sleuths at the Chennai airport. When the aircraft landed in Chennai, he managed to walk away, sources added. 

After it reached Chennai from Dubai, the flight was operated on the domestic route to Delhi at 6.10 am and returned to Chennai at 12.40 pm. It was then scheduled to depart to Coimbatore at 1.40 pm. Tajudeen booked a ticket on the flight to Coimbatore, and after getting on board, he checked for the parcel in the restroom to make sure that it was safe.   

However, he received another alert tipping him off about the DRI team that was waiting at the Coimbatore airport. He decided against carrying the gold with him, and instead booked a ticket on the same flight that was scheduled to depart to Delhi via Chennai. 

Realising that they were being led on a wild goose chase, DRI officers got a special permission and entered the flight when it reached Chennai around 4.15 pm. When they checked the aircraft, they found the gold hidden inside the flush tank. They held inquiries with a few passengers before detaining Tajudeen. 

During interrogation, Tajudeen reportedly admitted to smuggling the gold from Dubai. When questioned how he managed to book tickets so quickly, Tajudeen said four of his friends, who reached Coimbatore in another flight, had booked it for him. The DRI team then handed him over to the Customs officers. Later, his friends who reached Chennai at midnight were detained and taken to the DRI office in Chennai. The officials are inquiring who sent them the SMS tipping off about DRI.