Gold smuggling crackdown- 24 Kenyan women nabbed at Mumbai Airport in major bust

• Gold worth ₹38 crore, weighing 30 kg, seized

• Women attempted to mislead investigators by concealing gold inside their bodies

Mumbai – At Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport, the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence has busted a gold smuggling racket. A group of 24 Kenyan women was caught while attempting to smuggle gold worth ₹38 crore into the country. Upon inspection, authorities recovered a total of 30 kg of gold, including 25.10 kg of gold biscuits and 4.27 kg of gold jewellery.

The women had concealed the gold in shoes, inside their clothing, and inside specially designed pouches hidden on their bodies. They had been systematically trained for this method to evade detection by investigating officials.

The accused women will be produced before the court, and further investigation is underway to trace the mastermind behind the racket.

Editorial Perspective

• Cases of gold smuggling are being uncovered at the airports almost daily. Will the airport authorities implement concrete measures to curb this permanently ?
• The fact that 24 women from Kenya arrived in India at the same time for smuggling, indicates the scale of an international conspiracy.