Approximately Indian Rs1 crore was seized from a Bangladeshi man immediately after his arrival at the Hajarat Shahjalal International Airport from Dubai yesterday.
Personnel from the Customs Department and the Customs Intelligence and Investigation Directorate (CIID) made the seizure but claimed that the man, identified as Nannu Sarder, 35, ran away after leaving his luggage and passport while dodging the customs and CIID officials.
“Although we seized the currencies from Nannu’s luggage, but he ran away during the scanning, leaving his luggage and passport,” CIID Assistant Director Ayesha Akhter claimed.
However, a source at the airport, said the concerned officials had let the smuggler go in exchange for a bribe.
Akhter said Nannu’s passport showed that he had visited Dhaka, Pakistan and Dubai at least eight times in the last three months.
“We suspect Nannu was a member of a gang involved in the smuggling of currencies,” said the CIID official.
According to airport sources, Nannu Sarder, who hails from Nariya upazila in Shariyatpur, arrived in Dhaka from Dubai on an Emirates Airlines flight around 11am.