Gold bars were found on a plane flying from Dubai to Delhi.
According to the publication, customs officers at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi received information about the need to check the bathroom of the aircraft upon arrival in India.
The investigation did not disclose the name of the airline on whose flight the smuggling was carried, but customs officers added that the investigation is ongoing and further investigative actions are underway.
The customs service on Twitter posted how the police searched the toilet room of the aircraft and found gold bars wrapped in tape, weighing about four kilograms.
On the basis of inputs received, AirCustoms@IGIA rummaged an Dubai returned aircraft on completion of its domestic trips & recovered 4 Gold Bars hidden under the sink in aircraft's washroom (1/2) pic.twitter.com/StKVSgaYVf
— Delhi Customs (Airport & General) (@AirportGenCus) March 5, 2023
The source adds that gold is the most important trade item in Dubai, and plane passengers regularly try to smuggle it into India without paying customs fees.
“Gold trafficking scams are very common among smugglers arriving in India. On March 3, Customs officials at Chandigarh International Airport seized 18 one-kilogram fine gold bars totaling about $2.5 million.
Bars marked Etihad Gold Dubai UAE were in the passenger’s hand luggage. The 30-year-old man was identified at the airport using the Advance Passenger Information and Electronic Data Interchange system installed by US Customs and Border Protection to improve airline security.