The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has seized 5.8 kg of gold at the air cargo complex of Mumbai airport, that was being smuggled in a consignment of machinery imported from Dubai.

“In the import documents, the item was declared as sectional & drum type drain cleaning machines, but on careful examination, 5.8 kg gold valued at Rs. 3.10 crore in disc form was found concealed inside two motor rotors of the machine imported in the consignment,” according to a DRI statement issued on Tuesday. 

DRI officials had received “precise intelligence” about the consignment and carried out an inspection on May 6 at the Air Cargo Complex of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport, Mumbai.

The importer was arrested from south Mumbai and is currently in judicial custody.

The seizure in Mumbai comes on the heels of another seizure made by DRI Officers in Lucknow a day earlier on May 5.

In that case too, DRI intercepted an import cargo said to contain “electrical threading machine” at Air Cargo Complex of Chaudhary Charan Singh International Airport, Lucknow, and gold discs were found concealed in the machines in very similar fashion. Total 5.2 kg gold, valued at Rs. 2.78 crore, was seized in that case.

Over the last year, DRI has affected significant seizures of gold from cargo and courier consignments.

In July 2021, DRI had seized 16.79 kg gold, valued at Rs. 8 crore,  from a courier consignment, followed by seizure of 80.13 kg smuggled gold, valued at Rs. 39.31 crore, in November 2021 from a cargo consignment at New Delhi. 

In yet another case in August 2021, DRI had detected use of similar mode of concealment of smuggled gold in a consignment which had arrived at International Courier Terminal, Mumbai. DRI had recovered 5.25 kg of concealed gold, valued at Rs. 2.67 crore, from that import consignment.

During 2021-22, DRI officers had affected seizures of 833 kg smuggled gold, valued at Rs. 405 crore.

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