The Air Intelligence Unit (AIU) of Ahmedabad Customs arrested a passenger for trying to smuggle over 750 grams of gold by hiding it in his socks. The gold, worth ₹78.29 lakh, was seized under the Customs Act, 1962.
On August 9, AIU officers stopped the man, who had arrived from Dubai on a SpiceJet flight, after profiling him as a suspect. A check revealed six gold TT bars and three cut pieces of 24-carat gold, weighing 750.7 grams, hidden in his socks to avoid detection during screening.
“The gold was of 24-carat purity and had a total market value of ₹78.29 lakh. It was hidden inside the socks worn by the passenger, which is a tactic occasionally used by smugglers seeking to avoid detection,” a senior AIU officer told Gujarat Samachar Digital.
The passenger was arrested under the provisions of the Customs Act. Authorities are now probing whether the accused was acting as a carrier for a larger smuggling syndicate. Investigators are also trying to establish the source of the gold in Dubai and its intended recipient in India.
In recent months, Ahmedabad Customs has stepped up passenger profiling and targeted checks on flights from high-risk destinations such as Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Sharjah. “Our officers are trained to identify suspicious travel patterns and behavioural cues, which often lead to such detections,” the official added.
The accused remains in custody, and further investigation is underway.