COCHIN: Officials of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) on Tuesday nabbed a Thalassery native while attempting to smuggle in around three kilograms of gold soon after his arrival at the Cochin International Airport. Sources said a team of DRI sleuths, acting on a tip-off, detained Madhu Laj, 22, who landed here by a Jet Airways flight from Abu Dhabi in the evening.
The DRI personnel intercepted him even as the accused was leaving the airport after completing the clearance formalities.
“The contraband, in the form of 25 gold biscuits weighing 16.6 grams, was found concealed inside a transformer in his baggage’’, officials said.
Earlier, investigations had pointed to the operation of a racket engaged in the conversion of the metal into different forms. “Smugglers have an arrangement with such rackets. They conceal any quantity of gold inside electronic gadgets,” officials said.