The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence has busted an organised gold-smuggling network operating through Ahmedabad and Surat airports, uncovering dealings involving more than 13 kg of foreign-origin gold worth around ₹19.41 crore.
Three people have been arrested under the Customs Act, 1962.
The 42-hour operation began on October 16 after DRI officers placed suspected members of the network under surveillance.
Investigators say the syndicate used air passengers to bring gold into India, handlers to collect it outside airports, an illegal melting facility in Vadodara and an Ahmedabad jewellery outlet to sell the metal for cash.
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Gold Hidden in Wires, Bag Linings and Paste
The DRI said passengers used several methods to conceal the gold while travelling into India.
These included thin gold wires coated with rhodium, gold embedded inside the linings of trolley bags and gold paste hidden within the inner shells of luggage.
Rhodium coating can change the appearance of gold and make it look more like another metal.
Once the passengers cleared the airport, the gold was allegedly handed to handlers waiting outside.
The network then used intermediaries to move the material to an illegal melting facility in Vadodara.
Melting smuggled gold can make its original form harder to identify and allow it to be mixed into the legitimate jewellery supply chain.
The DRI says the melted gold was later supplied to a jewellery shop in Ahmedabad for cash sales.
890 Grams Seized, Records Reveal Much Larger Network
During the coordinated searches, officers seized about 890 grams of gold.
But physical seizure accounted for only part of the suspected activity.
The DRI also recovered evidence linked to 6.41 kg of gold that had allegedly already been melted illegally.
Further searches at the jewellery outlet uncovered undocumented foreign-origin gold bars and records relating to another 5.8 kg of smuggled gold.
Those transactions were allegedly routed through a separate handler linked to the network’s main financier in Dubai.
Taken together, investigators say the operation exposed dealings involving 13.017 kg of foreign-origin gold valued at around ₹19.41 crore.
The DRI has not publicly disclosed the identities of the three arrested people.
It has, however, identified the alleged roles of passengers, handlers, intermediaries, the melting facility operator and the jewellery channel.
Dubai-Based Financier Emerges in Probe
The investigation has also identified a financier based in Dubai who allegedly supported the network.
Authorities have not yet said whether the financier has been formally charged or whether further action is being taken overseas.
The Dubai link is significant because organised gold-smuggling networks often rely on several separate layers.
One group may source or finance the gold abroad.
Passengers or couriers then physically carry it into India.
Local handlers receive the consignment, while other members arrange melting, transport or resale.
Separating these functions helps reduce the risk that one arrest exposes the entire chain.
The Gujarat operation appears to have given investigators visibility across several of those layers at once.
Why Smuggled Gold Is Melted Before Sale
Foreign-origin bars or marked bullion can reveal where gold came from.
Melting removes much of that identifying information.
Once melted, the metal can be reshaped and potentially passed into the domestic jewellery market without obvious signs of its original form.
That is why illegal melting facilities are important to many gold-smuggling networks.
They act as a bridge between the smuggling operation and legitimate-looking retail activity.
Jewellery businesses can also provide a route for converting the metal into cash.
In this case, the DRI says investigators followed the chain from airport concealment all the way to an Ahmedabad jewellery shop.
That makes the operation broader than a routine airport seizure involving one passenger.
DRI Targets Full Smuggling Chain
Gold smuggling remains attractive because illegally imported metal can avoid customs duties and other charges.
The profit margin can increase when networks operate at scale and use repeat couriers.
Enforcement agencies have therefore increasingly focused on the entire supply chain rather than only catching individual passengers at airports.
That includes financiers, handlers, transporters, melting facilities and traders purchasing undocumented gold.
The Gujarat operation reflects that strategy.
The DRI says the investigation is continuing and more people connected to the network could come under scrutiny.
The three arrested accused will face proceedings under the Customs Act, while investigators continue examining financial records and the wider movement of gold through the syndicate.
What this means for you:
Gold smuggling is often an organised financial network rather than a single courier carrying undeclared metal. Buying undocumented bullion or jewellery can also expose traders and buyers to serious legal and financial risk.
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