Customs officers attached to Kozhikode International Airport near Karipur detained Muhammad Younus (32) for smuggling gold hidden in his rectum. He was on his way home after completing Umrah. The ʿUmrah is an Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca that can be undertaken any time of the year, in contrast to the Ḥajj. Muneer smuggled 1,123 grams of gold covered in condoms hidden in his private parts.
On Thursday, in three cases, Kozhikode Air Customs Intelligence officials seized 3.5 kg of gold worth around 1.40 crore rupees. Younus (32) from Koorachundu in Kozhikode, Nellipakundan Muneer (38), a native of Vettilappara in Malappuram, and Tayyil Sandeep (27), a Palakkad resident, who came from Doha on an Air India Express flight, have been detained for smuggling gold.
Among those arrested, Muneer and Tayyil are regular gold carriers. Younus went to Mecca paying rupees one lakh as part of a two-week Umrah package and returned with gold hidden in his anus.
Four capsules containing gold alloy weighing 1,064 grams were seized from Muneer. Like Younus, Muneer, too, tried to smuggle gold by hiding it in his anus. Younus flew back to Bharat from Jeddah. Sandeep, who arrived from Dubai on an Air India Express flight, tried his luck by hiding gold inside a cardboard box.
Customs officials scrutinized the cardboard boxes of children’s toys inside Sandeep’s baggage. They found these boxes had been expertly painted with gold. Cardboard pieces weighing 1201 grams were seized. The exact quantity can be ascertained only after extracting the metal with a goldsmith’s help.
Air Customs is conducting further investigation in connection with these three cases. The smuggling gang offered a reward of Rs 1 lakh to Muneer and Rs 20,000 to Sandeep. The smugglers paid Yunus about Rs 1 lakh, which was the cost of his two-week Umrah package.
On Wednesday, the police detained six individuals from outside the Karipur airport. They planned to abduct three carriers and snatch the smuggled gold disguised as policemen. According to reports, the gang specialized in robbing gold being delivered by carriers outside the airport.
One of the three carriers alerted the group about two individuals coming out of the airport with smuggled gold. The smuggled gold thus stolen was supposed to be distributed among the seven participants, including the informant.
The Customs Department detained three carriers and seized 3.18 kg of gold. The gang of six approached the Customs car while it was transporting the three suspects. They intended to drive away with the gold while disguising themselves as uniformed police officers on duty. Nevertheless, their scheme was thwarted when the police officers quickly apprehended the six people outside the airport.
The police detained Mohammad Ali, a native of Ottappalam, as well as Mannarkkad and Malappuram natives Muhammad Suhail, Anwar Ali, Muhammad Jabir, Muhammad Ali, and Amal Kumar. Police later arrested the informant from Manjeri.
In December, HinduPost reported how police arrested Keralite lady Mariam Shahla, who came from Dubai and tried to smuggle gold worth one crore rupees. Shahla, a native of Kasaragod, was caught on her arrival from Dubai on an Air India Express flight. She arrived at Karipur, hiding the gold in her underwear.
Shahla confused the Customs officials as she was specially instructed not to seem nervous no matter how hard officers questioned her. The authorities were also baffled as Shahla refused to admit the crime. They said that the lady never changed the expression on her face despite being interrogated.
Shahla’s luggage was searched, but nothing was found. But since they had secret information, the customs officials finally dared to search her body. Then, three packets were found hidden expertly sewn into her underwear.
Islamists use every trick to smuggle gold. Earlier, there were allegations against the Waqf & Hajj and Minorities Welfare Minister K T Jaleel of smuggling gold concealed inside bundles of the Quran.
