8 Indians held at Lanka airport for smuggling gold

Colombo, June 25

Eight Indians were on Thursday off loaded from a Chennai-bound flight and arrested by Sri Lankan customs officials at the international airport here for allegedly smuggling 1.2 kg of gold to India by hiding it in their rectums.

The eight Indians were nabbed along with a Sri Lankan national while they were on board a flight to Chennai at the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA).

The men, aged between 19 and 58, were deboarded from the Sri Lankan airlines flight UL 125 and on search 1,200 gm of gold was recovered from them.

“They were arrested on board the flight heading for Chennai at 0005 Hrs this morning,” airport official Leslie Gamini said.

Seven of the eight Indians had hidden the gold in their rectums while one person had concealed 59 gm of gold in his waist band.

The customs department said that the total value of the gold was over Rs 21 lakh. — PTI