Woman Smuggler Held at Delhi Airport; Jewellery and Luxury Watches Worth ₹5.42 Crore Seized
New Delhi: The Customs Department has arrested a woman passenger at Indira Gandhi International Airport for allegedly smuggling gold and silver jewellery, luxury watches, and foreign currency valued at over ₹5.42 crore.
According to officials, the woman, a US passport holder, arrived from Hong Kong on flight CAX-695 at Terminal 3 of the airport. Acting on suspicion, customs officers intercepted her and conducted an X-ray scan of her baggage, followed by a detailed physical examination as per prescribed legal procedures.
During the inspection, authorities recovered a substantial quantity of undeclared foreign-origin goods and currency from her luggage. The seized items included 1.2 kilograms of gold and diamond jewellery, 10 kilograms of silver utensils, and several high-end luxury watches from brands such as Rolex, Bulgari, Chopard, and Cartier.
In addition, foreign currencies amounting to 9,084 US dollars, 605 Euros, and 2,540 Hong Kong dollars were also confiscated. The total value of the seized goods has been assessed at ₹5.42 crore. Since the items were undeclared and in violation of the provisions of the Customs Act, 1962, they were immediately seized by the authorities.
However, domestic gold items weighing 552 grams found during the investigation were not confiscated and were returned to the passenger. The accused has been arrested under Section 104 of the Customs Act, 1962, and further interrogation is currently underway.
Notably, on February 19, customs officials at the same airport had arrested two passengers for smuggling marijuana worth approximately ₹10 crore in the international market. The contraband was concealed in 10 polythene pouches inside trolley bags.
