Customs seizes gold worth Rs 74 lakh at airport; two held

Two persons have been arrested and Customs sleuths seized 2.9 kilograms of gold, collectively valued around Rs 74.06 lakh, in five cases of smuggling of the yellow metal at the international airport here since last night.
While two passengers were arrested, three others were questioned and let off, said a Customs officer.
In two different cases, two Indian passengers -- Abdul Nassar, who arrived from Dubai, and Maipady Ismail, who landed here from Muscat -- were found possessing gold weighing 1.8 kg worth Rs 20.34 lakh and 25.43 lakh respectively.
The duo was attempting to pass through the security at the airport without declaring the yellow metal at the Customs counters, thus tried to smuggle the gold. The two were subsequently arrested for alleged smuggling of gold, the officer added.

In three separate cases, three passengers were discovered with a total of 1.1 kg gold collectively valued at Rs 28.29 lakh.
Each of the three Indian passengers was carrying gold worth less than Rs 20 lakh with him and hence they were questioned and not arrested. These passengers, who came from Muscat and Dubai, were let off and would be called for questioning as and when required.
As per the norms, only those trying to smuggle gold worth over Rs 20 lakh are placed under arrest, the officer added.