CHENNAI: Officials of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) have seized fake Indian currency notes in the denomination of Rs.500 and Rs.1,000 with a face value at Rs.29.53 lakh from a passenger who arrived from Colombo by an Air Sahara flight at Anna International Terminal on Wednesday last.

DRI Additional Director-General P. Babu told presspersons that the Central agency acting on intelligence, intercepted the passenger hailing from Kerala.

The passenger identified a person from Tamil Nadu waiting outside the arrival hall of airport who had come to receive him. The passenger had brought two corrugated carton boxes as checked in baggage in which boxes containing cheap crockery items were kept.

The sides of the two bigger carton boxes were found to be more thicker than normal and on the inner sides including the bottom covers of the cardboard boxes - Indian currencies of Rs.500 and Rs.1,000 denominations were concealed and wrapped in a newspaper and stuck them with cellophane tape.

Five consignments

Quoting the RBI report Dr. Babu said the seized currencies were declared not genuine in the quality of paper, font size in the numbering panel, security thread and intaglio mark.

Investigation so far revealed that the Chennai-based Kerala person had received five consignments of fake/counterfeit Indian currency notes including the present consignment from a person based in Dubai.

Dr.Babu said while two consignments were smuggled via Mumbai, the remaining three came via Chennai. The fake currency notes were meant for distribution in India.

The name of the three arrested were given as Abdul Nassar alias Akshay, Dhanushu alias Vijay and the passenger and carrier of the fake currencies — Rafeeq Mohamad.

The DRI Additional Director General said during the current financial year, the DRI had so far seized goods worth Rs.27.04 crore in 16 smuggling cases, 2 narcotic cases and 26 commercial fraud cases.

In all, 26 persons were arrested and 14 of them were detained under the COFEPOSA Act, 1974. Over Rs.9.46 crore was realised towards customs duty.

Rs.3.70 crore

Over the past three months, the DRI had effected a seizure of 45 kg of Ketamine Hydrochloride powder valued at Rs.3.70 crore.

The concealment of these veterinary anesthetic material was concealed in stainless steel grinders with spare parts intended to be exported to Hong Kong through the Chennai Air cargo complex.

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