The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has arrested two cleaning staff members at Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport for their alleged involvement in smuggling foreign-origin gold worth ₹1.6 crore.
According to officials, the arrests expose a sophisticated insider-led smuggling network that relied on collusion between international passengers and airport ground staff. The modus operandi involved passengers concealing gold in the aircraft upon arrival, which was later retrieved by personnel with authorized airport access.
The DRI, acting on specific intelligence, mounted discreet surveillance on the airport premises after receiving a tip-off that gold was being smuggled using insider access. During the operation, officers observed a team leader of the cleaning staff hurriedly placing a packet on the aerobridge staircase upon noticing the presence of DRI officials.
The packet, later recovered by officers, was found to contain gold dust in wax form concealed under a white cloth. Upon interrogation, the staff member admitted to concealing the packet to avoid detection and disclosed that his supervisor had handed him the gold retrieved from an aircraft.
Both individuals — employees of a private airport services contractor — were subsequently arrested under the Customs Act, 1962, and 1.2 kilograms of 24-karat gold dust valued at ₹1.6 crore was seized.
Investigators suspect the duo to be part of a larger gold smuggling syndicate operating across multiple international flight routes. The syndicate allegedly recruited ground staff to act as couriers, using their airside access to retrieve concealed contraband and hand it over to handlers outside the airport.
A senior DRI official said, “This case highlights the increasing use of insider networks in aviation infrastructure to facilitate gold smuggling. Surveillance and inter-agency coordination have become crucial to dismantling such organized operations.”
Both accused are currently in DRI custody and will be produced before a magistrate for remand. Authorities are also probing possible links between the arrested employees and external financiers or handlers based abroad.
The DRI has stated that further arrests are likely as investigations expand to identify the network’s overseas connections and potential lapses in airport contractor supervision.
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