On 26th November 2023, Vigilant troops of ICP Petrapole, 145 Battalion, BSF under South Bengal Frontier, based on specific information regarding possible smuggling of gold, during truck checking at ICP Petrapole, seized 2054.110 grams of gold of various sizes. A smuggler was apprehended with 17 gold pieces. When the smuggler was trying to bring these gold pieces from Bangladesh to India by hiding them in the cabin of the truck. The estimated value of the seized gold pieces is Rs 1,27,56,023/-.
According to the information received, ICP Petrapole troops received special intelligence regarding an attempt to smuggle gold by an empty truck coming from Bangladesh. Upon pursuing the input, the troops intercepted an empty suspicious truck with registration number WB-23C-5085. After the initial investigation, the suspect truck was brought inside the parking area of ICP Petrapole for a thorough search. During the thorough search, 17 gold pieces, which included 08 gold biscuits, 04 pieces of distorted-shaped gold cubes, and 05 small gold bars of different sizes, were recovered from the upper cabin behind the driver’s seat. It was hidden by wrapping it in transparent tape in the upper cabin. Subsequently, the driver of the truck was apprehended and the gold along with the truck was seized on the spot.
The smuggler has been identified as Abdul Johab Malik (age 29 years), S/O Jamal Malik, village-Khalitpur (Rural Rasta), district-North 24 Parganas, West Bengal.
During interrogation, the smuggler revealed that he is an Indian citizen and works as a truck driver by profession, and has been involved in gold smuggling for the last few days. The smuggler further revealed that on the midnight of 25-26 November 2023, around 2100 to 2130 hours, Bangladeshi national Ashik Mandal resident of Benapole, PS-Benapole, District-Jessore, Bangladesh came to him and gave him 17 gold pieces which were wrapped in transparent tape. After receiving the consignment, he hid the gold consignment inside the upper cabin behind the driver’s seat. On further questioning, he also revealed that the consignment was to be handed over to an unknown man in Bangaon, India. He will get Rs 10,000 for this work. But during checking, BSF jawans caught him with gold.
The arrested person and the seized gold have been handed over to the Customs Department, Petrapole.
A.K. Arya, DIG, Public Relations Officer, South Bengal Frontier expressed happiness over this achievement of the soldiers. He said that notorious smugglers trap poor and innocent people by luring them with small amounts of money. The notorious smuggling gangs are not directly involved in crimes like smuggling, so they target poor people. He has appealed to the people living on the border that if they come across any information related to gold smuggling, then they can give this information on BSF’s Seema Sathi helpline number 14419. Apart from this, South Bengal Frontier has also issued another number 9903472227 on which WhatsApp messages or voice messages related to gold smuggling can also be sent. An appropriate reward amount will be given to the person giving concrete information and his identity will be kept confidential.
Source: BSF
Report- Pratyusha Mukherjee
