Gold smuggling through Mumbai airport busted: Airport staffer among 8 arrested; Rs 8.95 crore haul seized

MUMBAI: The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), Mumbai unit, has busted a gold smuggling racket allegedly operating through Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) and arrested eight persons, including an airport employee.Officials said nearly 6kg of melted gold and gold dust, valued at Rs 8.95 crore, were seized.Officials said that if the accused had brought the gold through the legitimate route, it would have attracted customs duty at 35%, amounting to around Rs 1.75 crore.The DRI arrested Suraj Pawar (37), Pravin Shinde (20), Sudam Patole (36), Sunil Patole (42), Sachin Mestry (34), Sikander Shaikh (32), Asha Dhotre (53) and Chitra Shetty (26).

All eight have been booked under the Customs Act.Advocate Ravi Hirani, representing the accused, told the court that his clients were unaware that the gold they were melting was smuggled.Officials received specific intelligence that smuggled gold was being brought out of the airport with the assistance of airport staff and transported to a melting facility in Kalbadevi, where it was converted into metal bars before being sold in the grey market.

Acting on the information, DRI officials conducted a search at Parikh Niwas on Dhanji Street in Kalbadevi and recovered one yellow metal bar and a pouch containing gold dust allegedly derived from smuggled gold. Four persons present at the facility — Suraj Pawar, Pravin Shinde, Sudam Patole and Sunil Patole — were apprehended.The accused allegedly failed to produce documents establishing lawful ownership or purchase of the seized gold.

A government-approved valuer certified that the recovered gold consisted of 24-carat melted gold weighing 5,983 grams and valued at Rs 8.95 crore.During further investigation, the DRI identified two more alleged syndicate members — Sachin Mestry and Sikander Shaikh. According to officials, Mestry was responsible for collecting smuggled gold from airport insiders and passing it on to other members of the network, while Shaikh allegedly acted as an intermediary before the gold reached the melting unit.The probe later revealed the alleged involvement of airport employee Asha Dhotre, who was posted in the international departure area. According to the DRI, Dhotre allegedly concealed gold beneath her clothing and transported it out of the airport.The gold was then allegedly handed over in a washroom at the P4 parking area to Chitra Shetty, a travel associate employed with a business process outsourcing firm. Shetty allegedly passed the gold to Mestry for further distribution.

During questioning, both women confessed to being involved in the crime, the DRI said.The DRI informed the court that the investigation is ongoing and that several other members of the syndicate are yet to be identified and apprehended. Officials are also probing the source of the gold, its distribution network and suspected hawala transactions used for transferring proceeds of the illegal trade.