Visakhapatnam, October 11 (Daily Kiran) : The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has confiscated gold valued at ₹8.98 crore near Visakhapatnam. The agency announced the seizure on Sunday, revealing that two individuals were arrested in connection with the case.
According to officials, the gold, weighing over 5.8 kilograms, was retrieved from a car after a high-speed chase. The precious metal was hidden beneath the front passenger seat and was being transported from Kolkata to Hyderabad.
In an official statement, the DRI detailed that on the night of October 8-9, they pursued and searched a vehicle traveling from Kolkata to Hyderabad, ultimately seizing 5,832.90 grams of gold with a market value of ₹8.98 crore.
Acting on specific intelligence, DRI officials monitored the national highway closely. After a prolonged chase, they stopped the car, which had two occupants. Upon questioning and searching the vehicle, officers discovered a specially designed space under the front passenger seat, where three packets containing 24-carat gold with 999 purity were concealed.
Authorities believe the gold was smuggled into India through the Bangladesh-India border and was en route to Hyderabad. The seized gold was confiscated under the provisions of the Customs Act of 1962. Both suspects were arrested and presented before a magistrate, who ordered their judicial custody.
In a separate press release on Sunday, the DRI stated that it has intensified its operations against gold smuggling across the Bangladesh border. During operations conducted in the eastern region on October 8-9, approximately 7.8 kilograms of foreign gold valued at over ₹11.50 crore was seized.
The DRI’s efforts revealed the use of road and railway networks for transporting smuggled gold from border areas to Kolkata, leading to the arrest of six individuals. At the Dankuni toll plaza, officials seized around 6.8 kilograms of gold bars worth nearly ₹10 crore from a four-wheeler carrying four occupants, which was traveling from Banpur near the Bangladesh border to Kolkata.
On the same day, DRI teams in West Bengal halted passengers at two railway stations—Malda Town and New Jalpaiguri—and confiscated approximately 1 kilogram of foreign gold valued at around ₹1.5 crore.
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