New Delhi, September 28, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has busted a pan-India gold smuggling syndicate allegedly using courier networks to transport smuggled gold across the country, seizing 6.61 kg of foreign-origin gold worth approximately Rs 10.36 crore and arresting 11 people, including an alleged key mastermind.
According to an official statement issued on Monday, the operation was launched on the basis of specific intelligence inputs and targeted a network suspected of smuggling gold through the Indo-Bangladesh border in West Bengal and Assam before distributing it to major markets through courier consignments.
The Finance Ministry said coordinated searches and interceptions were carried out simultaneously in Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Ahmedabad and Guwahati.
During the operation, DRI officials intercepted courier consignments containing smuggled gold that had been booked from Guwahati and Kolkata for delivery in Mumbai, Delhi and Ahmedabad. Seven recipients were apprehended, while searches at the premises of consignors in Kolkata led to the arrest of three more persons.
A subsequent operation in Mumbai resulted in the arrest of another alleged key coordinator of the syndicate, taking the total number of arrests to 11.
Investigators found that the network allegedly split smuggled gold into multiple smaller consignments and dispatched them through courier services to recipients in different cities for disposal in the domestic market.
The investigation also revealed that the consignors and recipients were allegedly operating as paper companies or private individuals without engaging in legitimate gold trading. This arrangement was reportedly used to conceal the source and movement of the smuggled gold.
The DRI seized a total of 6.61 kg of foreign-origin gold bars valued at around Rs 10.36 crore under the provisions of the Customs Act, 1962.
In a significant finding, preliminary examination of documentary evidence suggested that the syndicate had transported and delivered nearly 318 kg of smuggled gold, valued at approximately Rs 475 crore, through the same courier-based network during the first nine months of the current calendar year, the Finance Ministry said.
Further investigation is underway to identify other members of the alleged network and trace the proceeds and distribution channels linked to the smuggled gold.
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