A man impersonating a Customs officer allegedly duped a passenger and fled with a gold necklace worth ₹12 lakh at Chennai airport on Tuesday night.
According to the police, Nandagopal, 23, a resident of Anna Nagar, had gone to Chennai airport to receive a woman who had arrived from Coimbatore on an IndiGo flight. The woman was carrying a gold necklace in an envelope.
As the two were walking through Terminal 1, the suspect approached them, introduced himself as a Customs officer and claimed that the envelope contained smuggled gold jewellery. He allegedly took the envelope from them and asked the pair to accompany him for further inquiry. The man then walked towards the international terminal and disappeared with the envelope containing the jewellery.
Realising that they had been deceived, Nandagopal alerted Customs officials and personnel of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF). Officials confirmed that no Customs officer had intercepted or seized any jewellery from the passengers.
Based on the complaint, the Airport police registered a case and launched an investigation. Efforts are under way to identify the suspect using CCTV camera footage from the airport terminal.
Published – July 30, 2026 12:14 am IST
