Vijayawada Customs foil smuggling bid, seize gold worth Rs 5.8 Cr; 5 held

Vijayawada: Customs Commissionerate foiled a smuggling bid and seized gold worth R S5.8 crore from passenger vehicles in Vijayawada.

Acting on specific information about the smuggling of gold bars from Chennai to Guntur and Rajahmundry, Customs intercepted three vehicles at Bollapalli Toll Plaza, on Vijayawada –Chennai National Highway.

On interrogation, they admitted having concealed gold in their vehicles. The smuggled gold was concealed in a specially built box fixed behind the passenger seat and in a specially built cavity under the passenger seats of the cars.

After checking 10.77 kg of gold was recovered. The total value of the gold recovered in the three cars is Rs. 5.8 crore.

Subsequent searches conducted by CPD, Kakinada on Saturday at Rajahmundry led to the seizure of 24 Silver bars (each weighing 1kg) with foreign markings. Five persons have also been arrested and three cars used in smuggling have been seized under provisions of the Customs Act 1962.

All the five accused have been remanded to Judicial Custody by the court of Special Judge to try Economic Offences, Visakhapatnam on Sunday. Further investigation is on

It is the highest-ever seizure of gold reported by the Customs Commissionerate (Preventive), Vijayawada since its formation in 2014.