Abu Dhabi - They were intercepted at the Jaipur International Airport and are being interrogated.
Published: Sat 4 Jul 2020, 2:20 PM
Updated: Sat 4 Jul 2020, 4:33 PM
Fourteen passengers who flew out on repatriation flights from Saudi Arabia and the UAE have been held in India with gold worth Dh7.7million concealed in their baggage. They were intercepted at the Jaipur International Airport and are being interrogated.
The gold bars were concealed in emergency lamps.
Indian authorities said three of the passengers flew out from Ras Al Khaimah on SpiceJet flight number SG-9055. "Twelve gold bars/bricks weighing 9.339kg valued at Rs45,761,100 (Dh2.25 million) were recovered from them," the customs department said in a statement.
Eleven more Indian nationals who had arrived on a separate repatriation flight from Saudi Arabia were held with 22.6528kg of gold bars valued at Rs110,998,720 (Dh5.45 million).
Several special flights have repatriated thousands of Indian expats - stranded in Gulf countries due to coronavirus Covid-19 outbreak - in recent months.
ashwani@khaleejtimes.com
Ashwani Kumar
Ashwani Kumar is a versatile journalist who explores every beat in Abu Dhabi with an insatiable curiosity. He loves uncovering stories that are informative and help readers form their own opinions.