DRI-ICG Joint Operation Retrieved Smuggled Gold From Sea Bed

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): The officials belonging to the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) and Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) seized 14.5 kilograms of smuggled gold from the sea bed in the Gulf of Mannar, off Mandapam Coast near Tamil Nadu. The gold worth nearly INR 6 crore is believed to have been smuggled from Sri Lanka. Two persons were arrested in connection with the incident.

Based on intelligence report that gold bars were being shipped to Indian coast from Sri Lanka, the officials from the DRI-Chennai Zonal Headquarters initiated patrolling across the coastal region. The unregistered fishing boat with two persons on board was intercepted. By seeing the Coast Guard boat, a bag was dropped into the sea. Upon interrogation of the suspects, it was revealed that the bag thrown into the sea contained nearly 100 gold bars inside it.

Following this, officials from DRI and ICG launched a joint operation to retrieve the gold. After nearly 20 hours of intense search by three divers, using ICG’s hovercraft H-197 and interceptor craft IC-114, a cloth bag containing gold was recovered. The recovered gold was later handed over to DRI officials for further investigation.

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