Preeti Arya, the customs superintendent, has been suspended due to allegations that she aided a gold smuggling group while she was employed at the Ahmedabad and Surat airports in Gujarat.
A departmental investigation into Arya was initiated on the basis of prima facie involvement. It was found that she would clear female carriers who were smuggling gold to avoid suspicion.
Three women were caught in Mumbai with smuggled gold. They were heading to Surat.
After a vigilance probe was started, Arya—who had previously worked for Ahmedabad Airport’s Air Intelligence Unit—was found to be implicated. A subsequent inquiry revealed that Arya carried out her actions even when she was on duty at Surat Airport. Staff members’ involvement in smuggling has been uncovered in a number of incidents in recent years.
A Chennai-based gang had smuggled gold worth Rs 200 crore from Ahmedabad and Surat airports over two years with corrupt customs officials’ assistance. After receiving information on the smuggling operation, officers from the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) had detained seven people, including Meena, the airport manager.
In Ahmedabad, the DRI team had arrested eight people from a hotel close to Airport Circle and two passengers at the airport. From the carriers residing in the hotel, the team confiscated gold paste worth Rs 7 crore. The department appointed fresh officials and transferred seven officials from Ahmedabad airport after the arrests.
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