DRI seizes 85 kg smuggled gold from Delhi airport; Chinese national, 3 others apprehended
New Delhi, Nov 19: Over 80 kg gold worth nearly Rs 40 crore, being smuggled into the country by concealing it inside imported machinery parts, has been seized by DRI officials at the airport here, according to an official statement issued on Friday.
Four foreign nationals -- two South Koreans, one Chinese and a Taiwanese have been apprehended in the case, it said.
Later, in a swift follow-up operation, further recovery of 5.409 kgs of foreign-origin gold smuggled into India adopting a similar modus operandi, was made from a Delhi-based jeweller, the statement issued by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) said.
The recovered gold, totally weighing 85.535 kgs, valued at approximately Rs 42 crore, has been seized, it said.
In an intelligence operation code-named molten metal', several Indian and foreign (Chinese, Taiwanese, South-Korean) nationals suspected to be indulging in smuggling gold into India from Hong Kong using the air cargo route, were identified, the DRI said.
The intelligence indicated that the gold smuggled in the form of machinery parts was being melted and moulded into bar/cylinder shapes before being disposed of in the local market, it said.
Acting upon the said intelligence, DRI officers examined an import consignment at the air cargo complex of the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) airport here.
During the examination, the consignment was found to contain electroplating machines fitted with transformers. The EI' laminates of the transformers were found to have been made of gold coated with nickel, essentially to hide the identity of the gold, the statement said.
Approximately, 1 kg of gold was recovered from each of the 80 imported electroplating machines, it said.
Further, during search operations conducted in several rented properties in Chattarpur and Gurgaon, four foreign nationals (two from South Korea and one each from China and Taiwan) were found to be using sophisticated metallurgical techniques to convert the smuggled gold in the form of EI' laminates into bar/cylindrical form for further distribution, the probe agency said.
These activities were being conducted by the foreign nationals in rented farmhouses/apartments in plush localities in South Delhi and Gurgaon, and extreme precautions were taken to keep the illegal nature of their activities hidden even from their immediate neighbours, the DRI said.
The four foreign nationals involved in the smuggling activities have been apprehended and are being questioned, it said.
During questioning, it has been revealed that two of the foreign nationals had stuck up a close relationship while being behind bars for their previous offenses of gold smuggling, the statement said, adding that further investigation is in progress.
Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has seized 85.535 kgs of gold valued at about Rs 42 crores. The gold smuggled in form of machinery parts was being melted & moulded into bar/cylinder shapes before being disposed of in the local market: DRI pic.twitter.com/mVJx4UN9x3
— ANI (@ANI) November 19, 2021
Search operations were conducted in several properties in Chattarpur (Delhi) and Gurugram (Haryana). Four foreign nationals, two from South Korea and one each from China and Taiwan, have been arrested: DRI pic.twitter.com/mLcCKDaPiI
— ANI (@ANI) November 19, 2021
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Strict security measures in place in Mumbai for Messi's events at 2 venues Dec 14, say police
Mumbai (PTI): In view of Argentine superstar footballer Lionel Messi's visit to Mumbai on Sunday, the city police are implementing stringent security measures, like not allowing water bottles, metals, coins inside the stadiums and setting up watchtowers to keep an eye on the crowd, officials said.
The police also said taking extra care to avoid any stampede-like situation and to prevent recurrence of the chaotic situation that unfolded in Kolkata during Messi's visit on Saturday as thousands of fans protested inside the Salt Lake stadium here after failing to catch a clear glimpse of the football icon despite paying hefty sums for tickets.
Messi is expected to be present at the Cricket Club of India (Brabourne Stadium) in Mumbai on Sunday for a Padel GOAT Cup event followed by attending a celebrity football match. He is expected to proceed to the Wankhede Stadium for the GOAT India Tour main event around 5 pm.
"In view of Lionel Messi's visit to Mumbai, the police are geared up and have put in place a high level of security arrangements in and around the stadiums located in south Mumbai. Considering the chaos that prevailed in Kolkata and the security breach, we have deployed World Cup-level security arrangements at Brabourne and Wankhede stadiums," an official said.
Expecting heavy crowd near the stadiums during Messi's visit, the city police force has deployed more than 2,000 of its personnel near and around both the venues, he said.
As the Mumbai police have the experience of security 'bandobast' during the victory parade of ICC World Cup-winning Indian team and World Cup final match at the Wankhede Stadium, in which over one lakh cricket fans had gathered, we are prepared to handle a large crowd of fans, he said.
"We are trying to avoid the errors that occurred in the past," the official said.
There is no place to sneak inside the stadiums in Mumbai like the Kolkata stadium, according to him.
The police are also asking the organisers to provide all the required facilities to the fans inside the stadium, so that there will be no chaos, he said, adding the spectators have purchased tickets in the range of Rs 5,000 to 25,000. After paying so much of amount, any spectator expects proper services, while enjoying the event, he said.
The police are expecting 33,000 spectators at the Wankhede Stadium and over 4,000 at Brabourne Stadium. Besides this, more than 30,000 people are expected outside and around the stadiums just to have a glimpse of the football sensation, he said.
The organisers responsible for Messi's India visit recently came to Mumbai to discuss security arrangements. During the meeting, the Mumbai police asked them not to take the event lightly, according to the official.
After those requirements were fulfilled, the final security deployment was chalked out, he said.
Police has the standard procedure of the security arrangements inside the Wankhede Stadium, where people are barred from taking water bottles, metals objects, coins. Police are setting up watch towers near the stadiums and there will be traffic diversions, so that there is maximum space available to stand, according to the official.
Police are also appealing to the spectators to use public transport service for commuting and avoid personal vehicles to reach south Mumbai.
To avoid any stampede-like situation, police are also taking precautionary measures and will stop the fans some distance ahead of the stadium and public announcement systems will be used to guide the crowd. Barricades will be placed at various places to manage the crowd.
In case the crowd swells up beyond expectation, the police will divert people to other grounds and preparations in this regard underway, he said.
Additional police force has been deployed in south Mumbai to tackle any kind of situation, he said.
