Six attempting to smuggle gold, phones from Dubai arrested

Criminal Investigation Department officers at the Bandaranaike International Airport arrested six individuals including two women along with gold jewellery weighing

three kilograms and 158 grams and 39 iPhones that were illegally brought into the country on Tuesday (2).

Police said the suspects had cleared the Customs without paying the due tariffs at the airport and were arrested at the arrivals terminal later on a tip-off received.

They are residents of Negombo, Trincomalee and Akurana and had arrived in the country from Dubai by UL-226 flight.

The female suspects were wearing the jewellery while the smart phones had been hidden in the baggage of all six suspects, police said.

The jewellery and smartphones were valued at Rs.70 million.

Preliminary investigations have revealed that these suspects had gone to Dubai on a visit visa and purchased these items with the intention of smuggling them into the country.

Police suspect that the suspects were able to clear the Customs without paying the duty as there is a well-organized network behind this smuggling.

The CID will hand over the suspects to the Sri Lanka Customs for further investigations.