Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) officials have busted a gold smuggling racket and arrested six people, including three working at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport. The agency seized 12.5 kilograms of foreign-origin smuggled gold worth nearly Rs 10 crore, the agency said on Wednesday. The DRI acted on specific intelligence developed by their Mumbai zone office and found that one Rohan Chavan (20), who works at the Mumbai international airport, was involved in a gold smuggling racket. The agency kept an eye on his movements, and when he stepped out of the airport premises and met three people in Sahar Village, Andheri (East), he and the three other suspects, Arshad Shaikh (26), Arbaz Tamboli (21), and Anas Patel (26), were nabbed. They were caught when Chavan was handing them over 12 heavy egg-shaped capsules that, on examination, were found to be containing gold dust in wax form. When the four were further interrogated, names of two more suspects, Anil Chavan (29) and Vivek Rewale (36), cropped up. DRI also learned that Anil and Rewale would soon be meeting them to hand over smuggled gold for the next consignment. The DRI, once again laid a trap and arrested the two, seizing 12 more egg-shaped capsules. The six were involved in smuggling of 12.5 kg gold worth Rs 9.95 crore. The three staff members working at the airport were involved in receiving gold from international transit passengers and taking the smuggled gold out of the airport premises by bypassing the security layers, the agency stated. The six have been arrested under relevant sections of the Customs Act. DRI officials are further investigating and trying to find out if they have similarly smuggled gold in the past.
