Three held at airport for bid to smuggle gold

Mangaluru: In two separate cases, gold worth about Rs 25 lakh has been seized from three plane passengers, including two women, at the international airport here, Customs officials said on Saturday. The three, who allegedly tried to smuggle the gold into the country, have been taken into custody, they said.

During a check on October 3, 493.48 gm of the precious metal in paste form was confiscated from a passenger, a press release from the Customs said.

On September 30, three gold chains weighing 143.48 gm and a bracelet weighing 32.3 gm were seized from two women passengers, the release said. The total value of the gold seized in both the cases has been estimated to be Rs 24.96 lakh, it added.