Bengal: Gold valued at Rs 55 lakh seized; smuggler arrested

Kolkata, Nov 2 (IANS) The Border Security Force (BSF) arrested a smuggler and seized gold biscuits worth Rs 55 lakh from his possession along the Indo-Bangladesh Border in the Murshidabad district of West Bengal.

“Troops of the 71 Bn BSF, deployed at the Boyraghat Border Outpost, had received intelligence inputs of an attempt to smuggle gold through the area of their jurisdiction. Those deployed at the checkpoint were put on high alert immediately. Around 10 am, they spotted a man approaching on a motorcycle,” a senior BSF official said.

He said that, finding his movements suspicious, the troops stopped the man and carried out a thorough search.

“Two gold biscuits and two small pieces of gold were found hidden inside the footrest of the motorcycle. The man was escorted to the Boyraghat BOP for questioning,” the senior official said.

He informed that the man is from the Pirojpur village, in the Raghunathganj police station area, near the IBB, adding that he was transporting gold smuggled in from Bangladesh.

He said that the accused claimed that the motorcycle was given to him by a local person, which he was supposed to deliver to another individual, adding that the gold was already inside the footrest when he took charge of the motorcycle.

The official said that the accused was promised a sum of Rs 2,000 for this task, but was apprehended by the BSF personnel.

“The weight of the seized gold was 461.29 grams. Its estimated value is Rs 55,35,480. The arrested smuggler, along with the seized gold and motorcycle, has been handed over to the concerned department for further legal action,” the official said.

While praising the effort of the BSF personnel, he said that the force, thanks to its intelligence network and vigilant personnel, maintains a close watch on all types of illegal activities along the Indo-Bangladesh Border.

--IANS

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