Ctg airport revenue officer transferred on gold smuggling charges

A revenue officer of the Customs Intelligence and Investigation Directorate at Chattogram Shah Amanat International Airport was transferred to Dhaka for his alleged involvement in the smuggled six gold bars which was recovered from an Air Arabia flight from Sharjah on Monday.

Assistant Director of Customs Intelligence and Investigation Directorate Chattogram Abdul Matin Majumder confirmed the transfer of the revenue officer KMM Salem but declined to comment further.

Speaking with TBS on Monday morning, the revenue officer claimed that the gold bars were found abandoned in a toilet of the airport. He, however, did not respond to several telephone calls afterwards.

The directorate has formed a two-member probe committee to look into the incident, Chattogram Airport Director Group Captain Taslim Ahmed told The Business Standard (TBS).

A senior customs intelligence officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, told TBS that a passenger from Sharjah handed over six gold bars to KMM Salem on Monday morning. He was supposed to deliver the bars to a smuggling ring. Later intelligence officials grilled KMM Salem on his way to exit the airport.

A senior official of the airport also told TBS, "We have heard that a revenue officer wanted to hand over some gold bars to a smuggling ring. I do not want to say more about the matter before getting the investigation report."

Several senior officials of the Directorate of Customs Intelligence and Investigation, Chattogram were contacted but none of them responded.

Indian woman detained with gold at Chattogram Airport

Earlier at 7:30am on Monday, customs officials detained an Indian citizen Tushar Nagin Das with gold ornaments.

Chattogram Custom House Deputy Commissioner Ahsan Ullah said that 421 grams of ornaments and 560 grams of gold in the form of paste were seized from her who arrived from Sharjah on Biman Bangladesh flight BG-152.