DRI busts smuggling racket seizes gold from melting unit

KOCHI: A gold smuggling racket operating in Kerala has been busted by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, which seized 9.75 kg smuggled gold worth Rs 4.75 crore, over Rs 62 lakh in cash and arrested nine people.

During simultaneous raids on December 4 at a melting unit at Kavanoor in Malappuram and at the house of the suspected investors in smuggling, 5.8 kg of gold worth Rs 2.90 crore was seized by DRI officials.

Based on information from the raid, two passengers were apprehended from the Cochin and Calicut international airports and smuggled gold was seized, officials said on Monday.

Five of the nine people were remanded to judicial custody on December 5 and the rest were granted bail by a court in Kozhikode.

"A search was conducted at the house of one Fasalu Rahman, a main operator of the gang, which resulted in seizure of 850 gram of gold worth Rs 42 lakh and cash of Rs one lakh," a DRI official said.

Based on the inputs received, the two passengers were intercepted at Cochin and Calicut airoprts gold paste concealed was recovered from both of them, he said.

The DRI 633 grams of gold worth Rs 31 lakh was seized from Ismael Faisal, who arrived at Cochin International Airport from Jedhah in a Kuwait Airlines flight.

It said 850 grams of gold valued at Rs 42 lakh was seized from a passenger, Pothan Unaise, who arrived at Calicut International Airport from Riyadh by an Air India Express flight.

A search was also conducted at the residence of the smuggled gold dealer, Alavi, at Vellila in Malappuram, which resulted in the seizure of 1.5 kg of gold valued at Rs 75 lakh and cash of Rs 62 lakh.

Apart from the passengers, Rahman and Alavi, Rahman's accomplices, Muhammed Musthafa, Mohammed Shihabudheen and melting unit operators Mohammed Ashraf, Ashique Ali, Veerankutty were arrested.