Mangaluru: DRI seizes 9.3kg gold, 5.2kg silver, Rs 84 lakh cash in major bust

MANGALURU: A Directorate of Revenue Intelligence driven operation involving personnel from Directorate General of GST Intelligence saw DRI seize 9.3kg of gold valued at approximately Rs 4 crore, 5.2kg of silver and Rs 84 lakh in cash. The operation spread over two-days from March 11 saw DRI officers first seize 5.6kg of gold bars in crude form at Mangaluru Central railway station from Syed Mohammad and Ashoka K S.
Sources privy to and involved in the bust – the largest that DRI Mangaluru office has carried out so far, said operation was conducted based on specific information about network of operators who were bringing smuggled gold in crude bars form from Kozhikode to Mangaluru. The gold was then remelted and cast into 100-gram bars with foreign markings, using foreign marking moulds. This in turn was distributed to various locations across Karnataka.
The operation that saw involvement of DRI officers from Bengaluru and Kozhikode also swoop down on Manjunath Shet alias Rupesh who was supposed to receive the gold from the duo apprehended at the railway station from parking lot of the railway station. The sleuths also carried out simultaneous searches in three different premises in Car Street here, Udupi, and in Shivamogga, leading to further recovery of gold, the sources said.
Sleuths traced source of gold to melters/jewellers in Kozhikode and swift follow up action led to seizure of gold and Rs 82 lakh in cash. Two Toyota Etios model belonging to the syndicate with specially designed cavities for concealment that was used for transporting cash and gold between Kozhikode and Mangaluru was also seized. DRI arrested seven persons including Naveenchandra Kamath, mastermind from Udupi, in this entire operation.
Further investigation is ongoing in the said case to uncover role of other persons involved in the racket, the source said, lauding the role of 40 officers from Bengaluru, Mangaluru and Shivamogga in this coordinated effort. Incidentally, DRI sleuths in January had seized 5kg gold worth Rs 2 crore at air cargo complex at old airport in Bajpe. “With this latest bust, we have more than doubled the value from our previous raid,” the sources added.