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A major gold smuggling attempt was foiled at Ahmedabad airport after customs officials recovered 24 gold biscuits worth Rs 4.27 crore hidden inside a speaker box on a Dubai flight
Customs officials at Ahmedabad airport foiled a gold smuggling attempt by recovering gold biscuits worth more than Rs 4.26 crore (Image-X/@Customs,Ahmedabad)
A gold smuggling operation that many social media users have compared to the plot of a crime thriller, customs officials at Ahmedabad’s Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport uncovered a gold smuggling attempt involving an IndiGo aircraft arriving from Dubai.
According to a report by ANI, customs authorities launched a thorough inspection of the aircraft. Given the nature of the information received, officials conducted an extensive search of areas within the aircraft that are generally inaccessible to passengers and not easily visible during routine checks.
To carry out the operation, customs officials worked closely with aircraft engineers, who assisted in examining sensitive internal sections of the aircraft. During the inspection, authorities discovered two pouches wrapped in black plastic tape concealed inside a speaker box located in the front lavatory of the aircraft.
Upon opening the pouches, officials recovered 24 foreign-origin gold biscuits of 999.0 purity, equivalent to 24-carat gold. The total weight of the seized gold was found to be 2,799.3 grams. Authorities estimated the market value of the recovered gold at Rs 4,26,89,325.
Officials stated that the sophisticated method of concealment suggested that the gold had been deliberately hidden by an unidentified individual with the intention of smuggling it into India in violation of the Customs Act, 1962.
Since no person came forward to claim ownership of the seized gold or provide legal documentation, the consignment was treated as unclaimed and subsequently confiscated under the provisions of the Customs Act.
The unusual hiding spot and the scale of the seizure quickly attracted attention online, and the discovery sparked widespread discussion on social media, where several users speculated about how such a large quantity of gold could have been hidden inside an aircraft.
“My guess is that one of the crew members was involved, and another crew member may have passed the information to Customs. Ordinary passengers are out of this,” said one user.
“This can’t be done without the involvement of ground staff or cabin crew of the aircraft @IndiGo6E investigate your cabin crew and ground staff at dubai,” commented another.
A third user expressed concern about security, writing, “They are keep gold in side the speaker like this means they can put any thing it is not good for passengers they should investigate and jailed who encourage them.”
Another user questioned how the concealment could have taken place without assistance from airline personnel. “This must have been done with the support of @IndiGo6E staff. How could someone put GOLD inside a speaker in aircraft? When passengers board the flight, crew members are already there. Now I doubt whether the airline or airline staffs are regularly involved in these kind practice and taking huge amounts of money under the table? This should be throughly investigated. @JM_Scindia, @AmitShah @narendramodi,” the user wrote.
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
Several users also highlighted the role of intelligence inputs in the operation. “Surely this was done based on a specific tip. Otherwise customs officers wouldnt take this much efforts to look so deep,” remarked one commenter.
Echoing a similar sentiment, another user wrote, “This looks like a confirmed tip was received by officials, else why would anyone just randomly scan or check the toilets or concealed areas of the aircraft? Looks like an insider job and the one who blew the lid was also likely to be an insider!”
One user even speculated about possible involvement from the flight deck, stating, “This is right next to the cockpit. More likely than not it was either a pilot or co pilot.”
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