IndiGo and SpiceJet Employees Arrested Over Gold Smuggling

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In a tale of the best-laid plans going awry, seven people, including four IndiGo and SpiceJet employees, have been arrested for gold smuggling in India. The employees, all based at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport, allegedly helped smuggle gold worth over US$93,000.

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Four airline employees at Delhi Airport are implicated in a gold smuggling racket. Photo: Getty Images

Delhi Customs officials swoop after a tip-off

Acting on a tip-off, customs officials intercepted three passengers fresh off QR570 on Tuesday, July 20. QF570 is the lunchtime Qatar Airways Boeing 777-300ER service out of Doha (DOH) that lands in Delhi (DEL) early in the evening. It is reported the passengers originated in Jeddah (JED), Saudi Arabia.

Customs searched the luggage of the three passengers and found two gold bars and a gold biscuit.

“We recovered two gold bars and one gold biscuit, worth Rs 22 lakh, from two passengers. This gold weighs 517 grams,” a Joint Commissioner of Customs at Delhi Airport told The Indian Express.

Officials hauled off the two passengers for further questioning. That questioning revealed the third passenger had already handed over his loot to an IndiGo employee.

“During questioning, they told us they are part of a gang that smuggles gold in small quantities to evade arrest. On their disclosure, our team arrested the third passenger. He was also on the same flight and admitted he was carrying 160 grams of gold. He had already handed over the gold to an IndiGo airline staffer.”

“On the basis of interrogation, it has transpired that three members of a syndicate at IndiGo and one member of SpiceJet were also involved in the smuggling of gold, and they have admitted their involvement in smuggling 960 grams of gold previously,” a statement issued by Delhi Customs reads. “Further investigation is in progress to determine if more gold had been smuggled in the past in a similar manner and if more members were involved.”

Customs official says busted smugglers were mules

The three passengers and four airline employees are now in police custody. A Delhi Customs official told The Indian Express the smuggling racket had been running for months. However, the arrested men were merely mules.

“They don’t even have the money to buy the gold and only act on the instructions of others. All three passengers are citizens of this country and would go to foreign countries to buy gold.”
In a published statement, an IndiGo spokesperson acknowledged the arrest of three employees. “We are fully cooperating and assisting the authorities concerned in this investigation,” the spokesperson said.
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The smugglers flew into Delhi on a Qatar Airways flight. Photo: Qatar Airways

A history of gold smuggling at Delhi Airport

Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport sees a bit of color and movement regarding gold smuggling. In the last 12 months alone, there has been a long list of interceptions and undoubtedly far more successful smuggling efforts. India is a gold hotspot and among the world’s biggest consumer of gold. Prohibitively high import duties on gold makes smuggling an attractive option. Smuggling is also reportedly relatively easy to do.
“Following up on suspicious travellers is not as thorough as it needs to be,” says one gold specialist website about the issue.
But the spate of arrests at India’s airport for gold smuggling suggests authorities are beginning to crackdown. Indian officials say investigations are ongoing concerning last week’s bust, with more arrests anticipated.


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