Rs 15 crore foreign currency seized, 4 held at Mumbai airport
MUMBAI: In a major breakthrough, the customs department’s Air Intelligence Unit (AIU) has busted a foreign currency smuggling racket and seized currency valued around Rs 15 crore. Officials said this is one of the biggest seizures of foreign currency in the city in recent years and suspect the money could be meant to finance drugs, gold smuggling or be part of a hawala racket abroad.
This could be just a tip of the iceberg, said officials, while pointing to the lack of a screening machine at the customs counter in the departure area of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport.
Customs sources said the AIU team had been receiving intelligence that a big syndicate is actively involved in smuggling foreign currency on a regular basis. Based on specific intelligence and profiling of passengers, the AIU on Tuesday morning intercepted four passengers who were about to board an international flight. Officials detained the four, including a Sudanese woman, from whom they recovered US dollars valued around Rs 9 crore. “They failed to explain the source of so much foreign currency and were detained under provisions of the Customs Act. They will be produced before the concerned court on Wednesday,” said an officer.
Related Posts
Man jailed for trying to smuggle millions of cigarettes into Australia.
A Malaysian man has been sentenced to five years in prison for an attempt to...
Solon seeks probe on fake antibiotics
A lawmaker proposed an investigation on the proliferation of a counterfeit...
CEO gets 10 years on smuggling charges
A CEO in HCM City was sentenced to 10 years behind bars yesterday after...
Illicit liquor smuggling racket using fake label of popular brands busted in Jhajjar; five held
With the arrest of five persons, the local police on Monday claimed to have...