Travellers being recruited at airports to smuggle gold

Indian Customs on alert for gold mules’ heading home from airports including Changi

- Zaihan Mohamed Yusof

The authorities in India, including Customs officials, are on the lookout for travellers acting as "gold mules", who return home with jewellery they had agreed to carry for a fee.

This comes in the wake of a spike in gold smuggling to the country, and amid reports of syndicates targeting travellers at various airports in jurisdictions in the Gulf, as well as in Asia, including Malaysia and Singapore, where gold is cheaper than in India.

According to media reports, the crime is so pervasive that in September 2023, 113 out of 186 passengers on a Chennai-bound flight from Muscat, Oman, were arrested for conspiring to smuggle gold and electronic goods.

The Indian Customs caught them with 13kg of gold, more than 200 mobile phones, laptops and cigarettes. It was reported that smugglers had influenced the passengers with chocolates and perfumes as commission.

The Sunday Times learnt that smugglers have been approaching Indian migrant workers flying home via Changi Airport Terminal 1.

Travellers who show an interest in being a gold mule are directed to a quiet spot in the airport, where a deal is struck. During negotiations, the courier is assured that a syndicate runner will retrieve the gold jewellery from him when he lands in India.

Mr Mohamed Bilal, the president of the Gem Traders Association of Singapore, said that while it is not illegal in Singapore for travellers to carry precious metals, including gold, out of the country, the couriers risk breaking the law in India when they do not declare the gold they are carrying in.

Male Indian nationals are permitted to carry up to 20g of duty-free gold, of a maximum value of 50,000 rupees ($800), into India.

The limit for female Indian nationals is double in terms of weight and value.

Gold jewellery carried over and above these limits will attract Customs duty.