Indian customs seizes 7 kg of gold from inbound travelers from UAE

Indian customs officials have seized almost 7,000 grams of gold worth hundreds of thousands of dollars from three passengers travelling into Delhi from Sharjah, in the UAE.

The undeclared gold concealed as chemical paste and worth about $358,000 was found in seven pouches hidden in handbags, per Al Arabiya.

The gold was found concealed on three passengers who had landed at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport, officials reported on Twitter.

“Air customs at IGI have seized 6,637 grams of gold from three people who arrived from Sharjah,” the tweet said. “The gold, in paste form, was concealed in seven pounces kept inside pockets of a body shaper, kept in handbags.”

The customs officials said the three people have been arrested under the Customs Act. Investigations are continuing.

Officials said they regularly catch passengers trying to smuggle gold into the country.

In July, officials seized almost 1,000 grams of gold concealed in the piping of a seat from an aircraft which had flown into Delhi from Abu Dhabi.

The undeclared gold paste worth about $55,000 was found concealed on the plane which had landed at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport.