Customs officials seized 8.25kg gold and arrested a passenger from the Dhaka Airport last night.
Moinul Khan, director general of Customs Intelligence and Investigation Directorate (CIID), said they had detained a passenger with smuggled gold bars immediately after his arrival around 8pm on an Emirates flight from Dubai.
“Mojahar Uddin, 36, was detained when he was crossing the immigration area, and the gold bars were found hidden on his body. He tried to hide in the toilets when he realised that the customs personnel were following him.”
Moinul said the gold worth around Tk3.37 crore. Mojahar was suspected to be a member of a smuggling gang.
He was handed over to the airport police.
According to customs and police sources, gold smuggling through Bangladeshi airports has become frequent in recent years.
In the past year alone, more than 70kg of gold were seized in 15 different hauls at Dhaka airport and other places in the capital, while over 1,200kg of gold was confiscated at other airports across the country.
The sources say gold smuggling became rampant and the smugglers more fearless since Indian authorities imposed restrictions on importing gold.