In a significant breakthrough against organised gold smuggling, the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), Mumbai, has foiled a novel attempt to illegally import gold into the country through an international courier channel. Acting on specific intelligence, DRI officers seized 1.815 kg of foreign-origin gold valued at approximately Rs 2.89 crore from a courier consignment that arrived at the International Courier Terminal (ICT), Mumbai, from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, reported news agency ANI.

According to officials, the consignment was declared as a household appliance and contained a meat-grinding machine. However, a detailed examination of the parcel raised suspicion, prompting DRI officers to carry out a thorough inspection. Upon dismantling the meat grinder and breaking open its internal gear mechanism, officers recovered 32 cut pieces of gold of varying sizes that had been ingeniously concealed within the gear assembly. The concealment method was designed to evade conventional scanning and detection processes at courier terminals.