The Air Intelligence Unit (AIU) of airport customs seized gold worth about Rs1.7 crore from four individuals at the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (CSIA) on Tuesday.

A 21-year-old man from Kerala was held for allegedly smuggling in gold worth Rs1.38 crore. He had cut the gold bars into 134 pieces and concealed them inside two music synthesizers and two solar lanterns.

According to deputy commissioner (AIU) Kiran Kumar, Abdul Hameed Mahshook Bedira was held after he arrived from Dubai in an Emirates airways flight. Officials said during inline screening of Bedira's luggage, gold weighing 5.139 kg was seized. After valuation the gold was said to be of worth Rs1.38 crore. The officials added that the pieces of gold were concealed inside 16 capacitors of the synthesisers and the lanterns.

Airport sources said that the accused is being questioned about the source of the gold. He has also been asked about its destination in India. Kumar has been arrested for a
non-bailable offence.

Besides Kumar, three more people were caught trying to smuggle in gold.

Samsheer Bara Moidin, an Indian passport holder travelling from Riyadh, was held for concealing five gold bars valued at Rs12,34,379 in his wallet. Shreefu Mohammed Kunhi, who also had an Indian passport, was flying in from Abu Dhabi and had concealed gold worth Rs 9,39,610 in the form of wires in his trolley bag. The third accused, Ashraf S Hameed from Saudi Arabia, was carrying gold valued at Rs12,45,654.

dna had earlier reported that over 500 kg of gold is smuggled into the country every day. Officials have attributed the surge in such cases of smuggling to the hike in import duties payable on gold.