In 'Operation Dolphin', DRI recovers over 17 kg gold thrown into sea by smugglers

New Delhi/Chennai, Feb 9 (IANS) The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has arrested three persons, who were trying to smuggle 17.74 kg gold worth Rs 10.1 crore on a fishing boat, and threw it overboard when intercepted, an official said on Thursday.

The entire gold was later on recovered by the DRI with the help of divers.

"We developed intelligence that a gang based in Mandapam, Ramanathapuram, Tamil Nadu were planning to smuggle huge quantities of gold from Sri Lanka by engaging a fishing boat. We learnt that three persons in the fishing boat would collect the gold in the high seas and landing in the coast of Mandapam," the DRI official said.

The official said that accordingly, a joint operation alongwith the Indian Coast Guard was planned to nab them.

A team of Indian Coast Guard and DRI mounted surveillance and the fishing boat was identified on the early hours of February 8.

"On spotting the fishing boat, rigid inflatable boats from the Coast Guard ship were deployed and the said fishing boat was intercepted after a chase in the sea near the Mandapam coast. During the course of interception, the persons in the fishing boat threw the contraband parcel into the sea. The parcel containing the contraband was retrieved from the seabed with the help of Coast Guard Divers," the official said.

The DRI said that the parcel contained 14 packages of foreign origin gold in various forms - bars, chains, etc and totally weighing 17.74 kg - were tied in a towel and thrown into sea.

The said foreign origin gold have been seized under the provisions of the Customs Act, and the three arrested persons are being interrogated.

With this seizure, the DRI's Chennai Zonal Unit has so far seized 209 kg of foreign origin gold in financial year 2022-23.

The all India gold seizure by the DRI is 950 kg in this financial year.