A second of such incident this year by Air India
On Wednesday, an Air India cabin crew was detained at Kochi Airport for smuggling gold. The Customs Preventive Commissionerate had received information that a man named Shafi, a Wayanad native, was attempting to smuggle 1,487 grammes of gold on the flight.
The cabin crew member was working on the Bahrain-Kozhikode-Kochi flight. Customs detained the crew member after receiving the information.
The reports stated that the accused arrived in Kochi from Bahrain around 8.30 p.m. He was apprehended and taken to the customs preventive wing less than two hours later, at 10.20 p.m.
According to reports, the accused wrapped the gold around his hands and covered them with the shirt sleeve. The police are currently investigating the incident and questioning the crew member for more information.
Four men, including two Air India contract workers, were arrested in January on suspicion of gold smuggling in Nedumbassery.
A flight attendant was detained at Calicut International Airport last year with 1.25kg of gold hidden in her shoes. In 2021, an Air India Express flight attendant was apprehended in Karipur during a smuggling attempt.
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