On certain days, metal detectors and scanners at the Kannur airport become "non-functional". This happens when specific Customs officials on duty briefly squeeze their eyes shut.
In the words of smuggling gang leader Mr M, these officers would be on ‘setting’ at that time. (Smugglers use the word ‘setting’ to denote behind-the-door agreements with Customs officials).
Heaps of gold would flow out of the airport on such days. Malayala Manorama got a clear lead on one such tainted Customs official who abets smuggling gangs at Kannur airport. When we took up the matter with the airport Customs officials, they nodded in agreement.
The officials said an inquiry against the officer, especially his alleged dealings with gold smuggling gangs, is progressing. On August 14, a gold mixture weighing 1.416 kg concealed in the knee cap (worn to relieve knee pain) was seized at Kannur airport, and the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) arrested the carrier.
No gang will be ready to bring in nearly 1.5 kg of gold and take the massive risk without the 'setting'. Carriers themselves will be in the dark about which of the officers collude with the gang, as what happened in the case mentioned above.
The Customs intelligence wing suspects the hand of the accused officer in aiding the carrier. (If the DRI team had not turned up, the carrier would have easily sneaked out of the airport without any trouble).
No hurdles, but golden opportunities
The gold smuggling gangs say sneaking in gold through the Mumbai and Delhi airports via 'setting' is relatively "easy and risk-free." There are not many flights to the airports in Kerala, so it's risky to smuggle gold through them continuously.
However, that is not the situation in Mumbai. There is a heavy rush of flights, and no one will monitor all the illegal activities.
Agent Shabeer appeared convincing when he disclosed that the most suitable time to sneak in gold through the airport is during emergencies or peak hours. Kerala-based gangs used such a ploy when they illegally flew in the yellow metal in large quantities via chartered flights during the Covid period.
The nexus between smuggling gangs and certain Customs personnel is such that they would collaborate and also pose hurdles to each other.
As per the information available, at times some Customs officials take the initiative to have a 'setting' with smugglers. Often such personnel would approach gangs through the carriers getting arrested at airports. The gangs also list such fallible officers and entice them for 'setting.'
They would first approach the Customs personnel through an agent near the airport. If they find that the officer in question can be lured into the trap, the smuggling gang in Dubai would directly contact them and fix the rate.
This officer will, in turn, make certain lower rung personnel too a part of the nexus. Often the ‘reward’ will be a fixed percentage of the profit. However, smugglers would often show their true colours here. They trick such Customs personnel into believing that only half a kg of gold was being sneaked out, while in reality, the quantity would be double or more. Such cases of double-crossing would come to light only when the carrier gets caught and reveals everything. The officials, too, act smart. After every 10 or 20 smuggling instances, they would occasionally catch the carriers of their gang.
Top-ranking officers too part of the nexus
Agent Shabeer threw more light into the dirty business. “When it comes to 'setting,' the Mumbai airport is the best. Certain high-ranking officers are part of the nexus. Full-batch ‘setting' means three to four kg of gold can be smuggled out in a single attempt.
The team of Agent Haneefka, a Kasaragod native, employs such a method. He will charge Rs 1.20 to 1.30 lakh per kg. Higher charges are demanded due to the presence of top-level officers. The 'carrier' charges are extra. Though the method is costly, it's risk-free. The officers will ensure safe passage. The contraband can be kept even in pockets and sneaked out," he said.
"The teams from Kasaragod and Koduvally have ‘settings’ in Mumbai and are ready for partnerships. We face minimum risk. They demand Rs 1.10 lakh a kilo as ‘setting’ charges. This will rise to Rs 1.50 lakh if the carrier expense too is included. We can smuggle up to three kg of gold in a single bid. Daily, two or three attempts can be easily made. The gangs based in Koduvally now smuggle gold through Mumbai."
"In the case of the Delhi airport, there is one Cargo Superintendent to help us. He was earlier part of our smuggling nexus. He got transferred out after some time but has returned. With him, it's very safe. He will take care of things very well. If that happens, you don't have to worry about anything," he added.
‘Setting’ in Kerala airports
"We have one official. But he is an alcoholic. Often, he will be drunk after duty hours. He may suddenly change his stance too. We will get in touch with him only if the situation warrants it. We can’t trust him fully if he is inebriated. We are told not to send any carrier having a passport address belonging to Kasargod. We will try it if we get a carrier hailing from Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, and Pathanamthitta. But if we could arrange a 'setting,' it's safe. He won't cheat. The work can be finished quickly," Shabeer said.
Kozhikode
‘Setting’ is readily available in Karipur.
Kannur
"It will cost Rs 70 000 to smuggle 750 grams of gold via 'setting.' This can go up to a maximum of 1 kg. We have to tell them the matter and give some additional amount. When the profit was nearly Rs three lakhs, they asked for a reward of Rs 60,000. Now that the profit from the smuggling business has gone high, they are also demanding more. But we should be careful as the passenger traffic in Kannur airport is less. We can’t sneak in gold continuously."
Kochi
"If we need, we can set up a setting. We can send our goods with the help of families. We can approach women who return from the Gulf after spending three months with their husbands.”
The staff stabbing in the back
Shabeer claims gold smuggling happens without carriers too. “In this case, 24 gold bars of Tola 116.64 grams were smuggled in one go. Some crew of certain foreign airlines and the staff deployed at the Mumbai airport were behind this.
"It works like this. The contraband is brought to rooms of the airline staff outside the Dubai airport and handed over to them. They will return it to us in Mumbai the next day morning. Since it’s a risky ploy, the charges are a bit higher. The airline crew should be given 10,000 dirhams (Rs 2.2. lakh).
"Those who hand over the contraband in Mumbai should be given Rs 12 000 per gold bar (total of Rs 2.88 lakh). The total expense will come to around Rs 5.08 lakh. Since 2.784 kg of gold is smuggled, the profit will be around Rs 10 lakh after the costs," he revealed.
Another method is to sneak in the gold with the help of the same airline crew. The carrier will hide the gold among tissue papers or in waste bins at the aircraft lavatories. The crew will sneak the gold out. "However, we would know about the aircraft used only at the last minute. The Customs officers usually won't enter and inspect the plane of big airlines," he said.
(This is the third part of the investigative series on gold smuggling by Malayala Manorama.)
Part 1: The capsule that crosses the seas! How gold smuggling thrives without a bar