Customs officials at Shah Amanat International Airport in Chittagong yesterday arrested a Dubai-returned person with gold bars, jewelery, and smartphones worth almost Tk2 crore.
The arrested, Nurul Islam, from Dakkhin Ghonia village under Chakaria, Cox’s Bazar, was handed over to Patenga police station, and a case has been lodged in this connection, said Directorate of Customs Intelligence and Investigation Assistant Director Sushanta Paul.
He told Dhaka Tribune that they found 33 gold bars, seven gold necklaces, four chains, a pair of earrings, and seven smartphones from a handbag belonging to Nurul. According to Sushanta, the gold bars, weighting about four kilogrammes, and the phone sets are worth Tk 2 crore.
Nurul, having arrived by Bangladesh Biman’s flight BG-046 that landed around 10:30am, tried to go away unnoticed while deserting the bag at airport immigration. He was challenged by law enforcement as his activities seemed suspicious.
Sushanta confirmed that they had been monitoring his movements, adding: “Nurul denied our challenge, but the customs officials made sure that the bag belonged to him by examining airport terminal’s video footage.”
He further informed Nurul had traveled in and out of the country 15 times in the last year before this arrival; it is possible that he is involved with gold smuggling.
Existing law allows a person to carry 200 grammes of gold from abroad after paying necessary duty. However, by serving a prior notice and paying necessary duty, a passenger can bring two kilogrammes of gold at maximum.
