Man attempts (and fails) to smuggle 12 gold bars under his feet from Singapore to India

A man tried to smuggle 12 gold bars — worth about $77,000 — from Singapore to India on Monday (Mar 6). But he was apprehended at the Mumbai airport when officials discovered that he used adhesives to glue six gold bars, each weighing 100g, to each foot before putting on thick socks. The heavy burden, which weighed over 1kg altogether, was found on Thrippathy Palaniyandy, an architectural supervisor at YTL Corporation in Singapore.

According to TODAY, he confessed to his smuggling attempt, which was believed to be carried out on behalf of a man in Singapore called Mr Muru. Reportedly, Palaniyandy earns a monthly salary of $3,174, and he would have received a commission of $845 and free flights if he’d managed to sneak the gold to Mr Muru’s contact in Mumbai.