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Another major gold haul

61kg found concealed inside aircraft's body; Biman men's link evident

Staff Correspondent
In yet another major haul, customs intelligence yesterday seized 61 kg gold from a Biman aircraft at Shahjalal International Airport.
Tipped off, a team of customs intelligence started a search inside the aircraft for smuggled gold after the Dubai-Dhaka flight via Chittagong - BG 048 - touched down at 8:30am. They recovered 485 gold bars worth around Tk 30 crore from special chambers of the plane.
The flight surprisingly landed at the Dhaka airport two hours ahead of schedule. The search continued for six
hours, said customs intelligence officials.
“A smuggling ring brought in this stash. The arrival of the aircraft two hours ahead of schedule was their tactic to dodge the intelligence agencies at the airport," Nojibur Rahman, chairman of the National Board of Revenue, told reporters at the airport.
He added that a vested quarter in league with the smuggling gang carefully stashed the gold inside the aircraft. Some unscrupulous Biman officials and staff might also have been involved, he suspected.
Soon after the passengers got off, the aircraft was taken to the bay area so that the smuggled gold could be safely taken out, reckoned customs intelligence officials.
The officials with the help of Bi man technicians unscrewed a part of the mirror panel of a toilet and seized 180 gold bars and 114 chains. They also had to unscrew another chamber door where 120 gold bars were kept, while 185 more were seized from a chamber for life jackets.
"Nobody can hide gold bars in such places inside an aircraft without the help of Biman technicians," said Moinul Khan, director general of Customs Intelligence and Investigations.
"Even skilled technicians are needed to remove gold bars from such places," he added.
Though the customs intelligence could not arrest anyone in this connection, they found involvement of two people. The officials, however, would not divulge the names.
A three-member committee headed by a deputy director of the customs intelligence has been formed to probe the incident The committee has been asked to submititsreportwithin 10 workingdays.
More than 1,000 kg gold was seized at the country's airports in last one year alone.
Some 160 cases have been filed in the last four years against over 200 people, mostly carriers, in the capital. But not a single case has been disposed of, police and court sources say.