Over the weekend, a middle-aged Malaysian woman was stopped at Chennai International Airport was arrested trying to smuggle 6.5kg worth of gold into the country, valued at RM 1.47 million (US$350,000) in her bags.
Customs officials reported that 12 gold bars were found in the 41-year-old’s bags on Sunday, after they searched the woman following a tip-off.
A press release via the airport’s Customs department states that the woman told Air Intelligence Unit officers that she was to pass the gold bars to an unknown person upon exiting the airport.
Malaysian newswire Bernama is reporting that the Malaysian consul-general in Chennai, K. Saravanan has said that the case is being investigated by local authorities.
India is the world’s second biggest gold consumer, right after China, and this year saw an increase on the import tax of the precious metal for the first time since 2013, from 10% to 12.5%. Most of the country’s gold is derived from imports. In 2013, the tax was raised to control a current-account deficit, that has seen some use the metal as a means to evade paying taxes.
High duties have brought upon a spate of busted smuggling attempts, not just via plane, but also train. Demand for gold increases during festival and peak wedding season, running between August and December.
While the carrying a toddler’s worth of gold in your luggage is certainly impressive, two years ago, a Singaporean man was busted trying to smuggle a dozen gold bars under his feet, with six bars tapped to the bottom of each foot. He was stopped by authorities after landing from the city state.
And while we’re on the topic of smuggling things into India, earlier this year a Malaysian man was stopped in Mumbai after airport officials discovered a suspicious canister in his luggage. Upon opening it, live human embryos were found inside. The Malaysian mule claims they were destined for a high-end Mumbai fertility clinic.
