(District North 24 Parganas)
Troops of the Border outpost Dobila, 153 Battalion, under the South Bengal Frontier, foiled the plans of a smuggler and apprehended him along with five gold biscuits near the international border. The smuggler was attempting to bring these biscuits from Bangladesh into India.
The incident took place on April 17, 2023. The jawans received concrete information that there could be possible gold smuggling from the Bangladesh side. Acting on specific information, the jawans launched a special operation in the area. Based on this information, they saw a motorcycle rider coming from the village of Amudia towards Dobila. When the jawans stopped him, he tried to run away, but they promptly apprehended him and brought him to the border post. Upon searching him at the post, they found five gold biscuits tied with cello tape to his thigh. The apprehended smuggler has been identified as Devashish Devnath, from District North 24 Parganas. The weight of the seized gold is 581.27 grams and its total value is Rs. 36,31,568/-.
During interrogation, the apprehended smuggler revealed that he had received a call through WhatsApp from a Bangladeshi person named Gogan Mandal, a resident of Satkhira, Bangladesh, 15 days ago. The Bangladeshi man told him that he would give him five gold biscuits, which were to be handed over to a person named Nayan of Sayesta Nagar. He would receive Rs. 2,000 for this work. In the greed of money, he agreed. He further revealed that he was bringing the gold biscuits on a motorcycle but BSF jawans caught him on the way.
The apprehended smuggler and the seized gold biscuits were handed over to the Customs Department, Tentulia, for further legal action.
The spokesman of South Bengal Frontier stated that smugglers try to smuggle in different ways. However, due to the vigilance and understanding of the BSF jawans, smugglers are being caught continuously, and their plans are constantly being foiled. He expressed satisfaction over such a huge success of the jawans.
The Border Security Force urges people living on the border to report any information related to gold smuggling to BSF’s Seema Saathi helpline number, 14419. Additionally, South Bengal Frontier has issued another number, 9903472227, on which WhatsApp or voice messages related to gold smuggling can be sent. People who provide concrete information will receive suitable reward money, and their identity will be kept confidential.
( Source: BSF)
