9 kg of gold seized off the Mandapam coast
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The Coast Guard on Friday intercepted a rustic boat close to the Mandapam coast and located gold bars weighing about 9 kg, valued at round ₹4.5 crore, in the engine bay in a fabric bag.
According to officers, inputs have been acquired by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) officers in Thoothukudi on Thursday, following which surveillance was elevated in the area.
After about 12 hours of surveillance, the Coast Guard personnel intercepted the nation boat close to Mandapam. A probe revealed that the particular person, who recognized himself as Ameen of Maraikayarpattinam close to Mandapam, was in possession of about 9kg of gold.
Based on his confession, the group got here to know that the bars have been smuggled from Sri Lanka. He had acquired the gold off the Gulf of Mannar. Four others, who have been with the prime suspect on the boat, have been additionally interrogated by the DRI officers. The nation boat has been impounded.
The Coast Guard, in a press launch, mentioned they’ve elevated surveillance in the area and a quantity of profitable anti-smuggling operations have been undertaken in shut coordination with different stakeholders.
The operation reiterated the Coast Guard’s resolve to make sure protected seas in the area by in depth surveillance to observe suspicious actions. In March, personnel in Mandapam, in an analogous operation, seized 15 kg of gold, the launch added.