Customs Intelligence seized gold and gold-paste objects worth around Tk5 crore in two separate operations at Chattogram and Dhaka airports on Sunday.
In one operation, conducted around 7am at Shah Amanat International Airport, officials recovered four cut pieces of gold bars weighing 466 grams from a frying pan and a vegetable grater carried by a passenger arriving from Abu Dhabi on a US-Bangla Airlines flight.
A total of 566 grams of gold, including 100 grams of declared gold jewellery, was seized, with an estimated value of Tk98.3 lakh.
Later in the evening, Customs Intelligence officials detained two passengers arriving from the Maldives at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka and recovered six egg-shaped objects containing gold paste concealed in their rectums.
The six objects had a combined preliminary weight of 2.734kg and an estimated value of around Tk4 crore. The exact quantity of pure gold will be determined after laboratory testing, said the Customs Intelligence and Investigation Directorate.
Officials said the two operations highlighted evolving gold-smuggling tactics and reaffirmed their commitment to preventing smuggling through intelligence-based operations, surveillance and risk-based passenger screening.
