Bengaluru customs nab T.N. man carrying 2547 red-eared slider turtles from Singapore
According to officials, 517 out of 2547 turtles were found dead, due to suffocation. The accused is a mule working for an international wild animal smuggling racket. The officials are looking into how Vadivel hoodwinked Singapore Customs officials to smuggle wildlife in his backpack. He told the officials that he was asked to handover the bag to a person waiting outside KIA.
The import of these live animals is a violation of Export-Import (EXIM) Policy and punishable under the Customs Act, 1962, the officials said.
The sleuths have initiated the process to deport the rescued animals to Singapore, after obtaining a deportation certificate from the Animal Quarantine Department, while dead animals will be disposed of as per the standard procedures.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
9 hours ago
- Time of India
Catering staffer at Mumbai airport arrested for smuggling gold worth Rs 1.4 crore
Mumbai: Customs officials on Saturday apprehended an employee of a catering store at the city airport for allegedly smuggling 1.5kg gold dust in wax form worth Rs 1.4 crore. Based on a profiling tip-off, Air Intelligence Unit officers intercepted Alloysius Alvares, who worked with Balaji Caterers, near the departure gate and found the gold. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now During interrogation, Alvares reportedly admitted that he was smuggling the gold on behalf of an unidentified passenger, who managed to evade authorities. His statement, recorded under Section 108 of the Customs Act, 1962, confirmed his involvement in the possession, concealment, and carriage of smuggled goods. However, Alvares's lawyer, Arun Gupta, argued that Customs have made his client a scapegoat by not arresting the passenger who actually smuggled the gold. Alvares was produced before a local court, which remanded him to judicial custody.
Time of India
a day ago
- Time of India
With slash in import duty, gold smuggling at RGIA falls by 70%
Hyderabad: Gold smuggling at Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA) has seen a sharp decline following a reduction in import duty from 15% to 6% last year and heightened surveillance. According to data obtained through an RTI application filed by TOI with the customs department, gold seizures decreased by 68%, from 132.4 kg in 2023-24 to 42.5 kg in 2024-25. The worth of gold seized at RGIA during 2024-25 is Rs 32.11 crore. On the other hand, cigarette seizures experienced a threefold increase, rising from 54 cases in 2023-24 to 175 cases in 2024-25. The RTI data shows that in the previous fiscal, authorities apprehended 133 flyers involved in gold smuggling, down from 240 in 2023. Whenever a passenger is caught smuggling goods, including gold, the case is investigated and a showcause notice is issued under section 124 of the Customs Act, 1962, says the RTI reply. You Can Also Check: Hyderabad AQI | Weather in Hyderabad | Bank Holidays in Hyderabad | Public Holidays in Hyderabad "Passenger profiling, baggage scanning, deployment of officers for monitoring, and coordinating with intelligence agencies have helped prevent smuggling of gold and other goods. We have a staff of 96 in the office of deputy/assistant commissioner at RGIA," said AV Ramana Murthy, deputy commissioner, customs, RGIA. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Access all TV channels anywhere, anytime Techno Mag Learn More Undo The majority of smuggled gold originates from West Asian cities, such as Jeddah, Sharjah, Dubai, Muscat, Kuwait, and Bahrain, with passengers attempting to conceal gold in various forms such as paste, capsules and garments. During screening, authorities have also discovered gold hidden in passengers' rectums. In one incident reported on June 25, 2024, RGIA customs officials seized 806 gm of gold worth Rs 58.8 lakh from a passenger arriving from Abu Dhabi, who had hidden it inside his rectum. The current market rate for 24-carat gold in Hyderabad stands at approximately Rs 1 crore per kg, indicating that a smuggler can potentially gain Rs 5 lakh to Rs 6 lakh per kg of gold. Usually, gold is cheaper by 5% to 7% in countries like the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Qatar. Under customs regulations, passengers can carry gold, including jewellery, up to a maximum limit of 1 kg in their baggage. For jewellery owned for more than one year, male travellers are permitted a duty-free allowance of up to 20 grams, whilst female passengers can bring up to 40 gm without paying customs duty as part of their legitimate baggage. MSID:: 123076053 413 | Get the latest lifestyle updates on Times of India, along with Friendship Day wishes , messages and quotes !
The Hindu
3 days ago
- The Hindu
Customs officials arrest mule trying to smuggle three gibbons in check-in baggage
The air intelligence unit of the Customs Department of the Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) on Saturday caught a 37-year-old woman allegedly trying to smuggle three gibbons concealed in her check-in baggage, which were later found dead due to suffocation. The accused, identified as Najma, a resident of Bagalur, was caught as soon as she landed from a Thai Airways flight from Bangkok to Bengaluru. The accused, according to the officials, was working as a mule for an international wildlife smuggling racket and was earlier arrested for a similar offence reported by Chennai in February 2024 . The accused had allegedly stuffed the three gibbons in the check in bag along with packets of snacks to be handed over to her contacts waiting outside the airport. When the officials checked the baggage they found one silver gibbon and two Bornean white bearded gibbons dead. The accused has been booked under Wildlife Protection Act and taken into the custody to ascertain the people behind this network .
