Gold worth Rs 1.59 crore seized at Chennai airport

CHENNAI:

Customs

officers at Chennai international airport have seized 3.27 kg of

gold

worth Rs 1.59 crore.

On Saturday, during a field surveillance, the officials found a suspicious polythene bag lying unclaimed inside a dustbin in a toilet in the arrival hall. The bag contained a gold foil with silver coating, wrapped in a carbon paper. On extraction, 1.8 kg of gold -- worth Rs 87.82 lakh – was recovered. Further investigation was under progress, a customs statement on Monday said.

In another case, two men, who arrived from Sharjah in an

Air Arabia

flight (G9 471) in the early hours of Monday were intercepted at the exit. Seven gold bundles were recovered from their rectums. The recovered gold weighed 1.47 kg and was worth Rs 71.72 lakh.

The passengers were arrested.