Gold packed in milk powder packets seized at Mangaluru International Airport

Mangaluru: Smugglers have invented newer ways to smuggle gold into the country by circumventing customs officials. On July 1, customs officials at Mangaluru International Airport (MIA) thwarted another such attempt.

Customs officials said that 24-carat gold weighing 602.2 grams of gold from a male passenger who had arrived from Dubai on Air India flight number IX384.

The passenger, hailing from Kasaragod in Kerala, tried to avoid detection by concealing the gold in paste form packed in milk powder packets that were stuffed in the check-in baggage.

The market value of the confiscated gold is estimated to be Rs 31.34 lakh, officials added.