Hyderabad: Gold worth 18 lakhs discovered hidden as beads on Burqa

A traveler who concealed gold as beads sewed onto burqas has been charged with gold smuggling by Hyderabad Customs. The male traveler landed in Telangana’s capital on Sunday, carrying 350 grams of gold valued at around Rs 18.18 lakh. Hundreds of beads were sewed onto burqas, which were then checked in as luggage on the Flydubai aircraft.

A person is seen removing gold pearls from a burqa in a video published on Twitter by Hyderabad Customs.

“On 27.02.22, Hyderabad Customs booked a case of smuggling of gold valued Rs.18.18 lakh weighing 350.00 grams against a passenger who arrived from Dubai by Flight No.FZ-439,” the Customs department wrote while sharing the video.

The customs agency at Hyderabad Airport has foiled numerous such creative attempts at gold smuggling. Officials discovered gold paste worth Rs 47 lakh hidden beneath a passenger’s bandages in January.

A woman Sudanese traveller who had hidden gold worth 58 lakh in her undergarments and hand luggage had already been apprehended.