Delhi Airport Customs Seizes 869 Grams of Gold Hidden Inside Electric Scooter Tyres

NEW DELHI, AUGUST 07, 2026 — In a major crackdown on illicit smuggling operations, customs officials deployed at Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport in New Delhi intercepted a passenger attempting to smuggle 869.5 grams of 24-carat gold cleverly concealed within an electric scooter. Acting on targeted intelligence and specific passenger profiling, the Air Intelligence Unit (AIU) stopped the traveler at Terminal-1 following his arrival on IndiGo flight 6E-6133, which had originated in Jeddah and connected to Delhi via Mumbai on August 6, 2026.

The passenger, who was carrying routine household items alongside the electric scooter as checked-in luggage, initially cleared security checks without raising suspicion, as the metal frame did not set off the Door Frame Metal Detector (DFMD). However, X-ray scanning of the checked baggage flagged high-density anomalies inside the vehicle’s wheels. Upon conducting a physical examination, officials dismantled the electric scooter to uncover nineteen cut pieces of pure 24-carat gold strategically stuffed into the solid core of the rubber tyres to evade detection. Customs authorities have impounded the gold under the Customs Act, and further investigation is currently underway to identify broader smuggling networks tied to the route.