Gold Smuggling Foiled at Ahmedabad Airport: Gold Bars Worth Over INR 4 Crore Found Concealed Inside IndiGo Aircraft Toilet Speaker Box (Watch Videos)

Customs officials at the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International (SVPI) Airport seized foreign-origin gold worth over INR 4.26 crore on Friday. The contraband, weighing nearly 2.8 kilograms, was found concealed inside a speaker box in the front lavatory of an IndiGo flight arriving from Dubai.

Acting on specific profiling during a routine rummaging operation, customs officers, assisted by aircraft engineers, conducted a detailed search of IndiGo flight 6E-1478 after it landed. The team recovered two distinct packages wrapped tightly in black plastic adhesive tape from behind a wall-mounted speaker compartment inside the aircraft's toilet facility. Exotic Wildlife Smuggling Busted at Chhatrapati Shivaji Airport: Mumbai Customs Foil Animal Smuggling, Arrests Passenger With Albino Red-Eared Slider Turtles, Marmosets, and Kinkajou (See Pics and Video).

Upon opening the packets, authorities discovered 24 gold biscuits of 24-carat purity, weighing exactly 2,799.3 grams. The total domestic market value of the confiscated precious metal is valued at INR 4,26,89,325. According to officials, the meticulous method of concealment points to an organized cross-border smuggling attempt. Since no passenger or cabin crew member came forward to claim legal ownership of the items, the entire consignment was formally confiscated as unclaimed property under the relevant provisions of the Customs Act, 1962.

Ahmedabad Customs has registered a case and initiated a comprehensive investigation. Officials are currently auditing flight data, scanning passenger manifests, and reviewing airport security footage to identify the individuals involved in placing the contraband and those intended to retrieve it upon arrival. Gold Smuggling at Delhi Airport: Custom Officials Foil Smuggling Attempt, Seize Gold Hidden in Pickle Box at IGI Airport (Watch Video).

Gold Smuggling Foiled at Ahmedabad Airport

Gujarat | During the search conducted on IndiGo Flight No. 6E-1478 arriving from Dubai at SVPI Airport, Ahmedabad on 12.06.2026, Customs officials, with the help of Aircraft Engineers, seized two pouches wrapped in black plastic tape inside the speaker box located in the front… pic.twitter.com/rcn5s6KsSh

— ANI (@ANI) June 13, 2026

This incident follows a series of recent major interceptions at the SVPI transit hub. In February, airport authorities halted a passenger from Dubai carrying over 600 grams of gold paste, alongside a separate case where four international arrivals were intercepted attempting to smuggle rhodium-coated gold jewelry valued at over ₹1.5 crore.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 13, 2026 10:25 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).