Jewellery worth more than $95,000 found hidden at Moscow airport

Customs officers at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport have seized undeclared jewellery and gemstones worth more than 8 million rubles ($95,000) from a 48-year-old Russian passenger arriving from Hong Kong, the Russian Federal Customs Service said.

The valuables were discovered during a random inspection in the airport’s green channel, where the woman’s hand luggage was scanned with an X-ray machine.

According to the Federal Customs Service, cited by local media, the passenger had concealed five rings, three pairs of earrings, a bracelet and six branded certificates inside a travel neck pillow.

A personal search also revealed a necklace in the pocket of the woman’s coat. She then took a bag containing 24 gemstones out of her sneakers.

The passenger told customs officers that only three of the jewellery items were newly purchased, while she had owned the other pieces for some time.

“An examination established that the jewellery was made of 750 gold with diamonds, emeralds, corundum, garnets, onyx and beryl. The zip bag contained uncut diamonds, kunzites, tourmalines and spinels,” the Federal Customs Service said.

By Tamilla Hasanova