DRI seizes over 10kg gold, Myanmar currency worth Rs 4.2 crore

KOLKATA: The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has seized more than 10 kg gold along with Indian and Myanmarese currencies, cumulatively valued at Rs 4.2 crore, in two separate cases, according to an official statement issued on Wednesday.

Six people have been arrested in the case, it said.

In the first operation, the DRI officers apprehended four people, including a woman, at Siliguri, from two buses -- one coming from Shillong and the other from Guwahati -- in the early hours of Monday.


During search, 38 pieces of gold biscuits (166 g each) and a gold bar weighing 1 kg having a total weight of 7.3 kg concealed in the shoes of the said people, were recovered, the statement issued by the DRI said.

In addition to the smuggled gold, Myanmar currency amounting to 1,00,150 was recovered from one of them, it said.

During interrogation, the apprehended passengers revealed that the gold was handed over to them in Aizawl by a Myanmarese national with the direction to hand over the same in Kolkata to a person whose details was supposed to be revealed to them at an appropriate time.

The collective value of the goods seized was Rs 2.89 crore.

In the second operation, the DRI officers intercepted a bus on Tuesday morning near Ranaghat and intercepted two women passengers.

On questioning, they admitted that they were carrying smuggled gold concealed in their luggage.

"Search of baggage of both the apprehended persons corroborated the admissions of the said two female passengers and 20 pieces of gold biscuits each weighing 166 g were recovered. A cash of Rs 21,600 was also recovered during course of search," the statement said.

In this case too the apprehended female passengers were handed over the gold by a Myanmarese national with direction to deliver the same in Kolkata. The specifics were supposed to be intimated to them at a later stage.

The total weight of the seized gold was found to be 3.3 kg valued at Rs 1.31 crore. The recovered gold and currency were seized and the duo was arrested.

In the current financial year so far, more than 90 kg of gold has been seized by the DRI in the eastern region.