NRI who used 100 women as gold carriers wanted
MUMBAI: A 32-year-old Dubaibased Indian, who runs a gold smuggling syndicate worth millions in India, and has hired 100 women in the past five years as business associates or carriers, is wanted by the directorate of revenue intelligence (DRI).
Officials said most of the carriers of gold were poor widows. “We cannot disclose the Dubaibased smuggler’s name. He is a native of Kerala,” said an official.
The accused came under DRI’S lens after one of his business partners, Shazia Parvin Farid Shaikh, 37, who has been in the business since 2013, was arrested on July 25. Along with Shazia, her two associates – Mehboob Ali Mohammed Hussain Shaikh, 39, and Mahammad Eshaque Abdul Aziz Shaikh, 30 – and Tabassum Parvez Khan, 27, a carrier, were also arrested after the Mumbai crime branch and DRI set up a trap in Borivli. Initially 58 gold bars and ₹20 lakh cash were recovered and later seven more gold bars and ₹21 lakh cash were recovered from a Navi Mumbai jeweller, said inspector Chimaji Adhav of unit 11.
Shazia used to send carriers to Dubai. However, after the accused did not give Shazia her share for the last consignment, he started dealing with another associate in Mumbai. Shazia then hired Mehboob and Mahammad from Cheetah camp. The Dubaibased smuggler sent another gold consignment through Tabassum, a first-time carrier and the smuggler’s A Dubai-based Indian ran the smuggling syndicate. He has hired more than 100 women as carriers of gold or as business associates
The women carriers wouldgoto Dubai and smuggle the gold back to India where it would be sold
Tabassum, one of the arrested accused, used back braces – belts used for back pain – to hide at least 10 to 20 gold bars while traveling from Dubai to India
The carriers preferred to land at small airports such as Pune, Goa, Chennai, Hyderabad, Nagpur, Jaipur and Kolkata to avoid authorities’ gaze
new city associate went to receive it at Pune airport on June 26. Shazia, who was aware of the deal, was waiting outside the airport with Mehboob and Eshaque.
Posing as crime branch officers, the trio then allegedly kidnapped the associate and threatened him and he left. A police informant watching the incident, suspected foul play and followed
them all. Shazia, who received the gold from Tabassum, was caught along with the others when they were selling it in Borivli in July, said an official. They were then handed over to DRI.
“We have been questioning several jewellers in Mumbai who appear to be part of the racket. Total 9kg gold and ₹41 lakh has been recovered,” said an official.