Suspected Gold Carrier From Gulf 'Abducted' By Smugglers In Kerala After She Got Away From Them
The abduction of a recent Gulf-returnee in Kerala has taken an unexpected turn after it emerged that she could be a 'carrier' for gold smugglers.
The 32-year-old woman, who returned from the Gulf only four days ago, was allegedly abducted from her house in Mannar by an unidentified gang in the wee hours of Monday.
The armed gang, which barged into the house by breaking open the front door and took the woman, identified as Bindhu away.
But within hours the gang abandoned her by the wayside in Palakkad district.?
Police had launched an investigation into the abduction on the family's complaint.
The woman, after she was released by the abductors took an autorickshaw and reached the nearest police station.
She told the police that there were four men in the car, in which she was abducted, and they had asked her for money.
According to the police, the woman who used to work in a supermarket in the Gulf had recently returned to Kerala from the Middle East.
She had traveled to the Middle East on a visiting visa last month and returned last week.
Could be gold carrier
Police suspect that the woman was acting as a career for gold smugglers.
According to some local media reports the woman may have smuggled gold in the past too.
But for some reason, this time she had abandoned the smuggled goods to avoid getting caught.
Her family has also told the police that since her arrival in Kerala, she had been receiving phone calls asking whether she had any gold with her.
When denied there were any, the anonymous callers cut the phone call, they said adding that two people were also found moving under suspicious circumstances near the house.
"As per the preliminary information, issues related to gold-smuggling was suspected behind the kidnapping," police said.
Gold smuggling from the middle east is rampant in Kerala and the smuggler uses unsuspecting 'ordinary looking' individuals as careers to transport them.
During the lockdown, the smugglers had even used people traveling on Vande Bharat flights to smuggle gold. There have also been cases where the smugglers using the plight of those who lost their jobs and were struggling to return home.
They were made to carry illegal gold in exchange for a flight ticket to Kerala.
The rackets use the human body to quite literally anything that can be brought on a flight as means to conceal the gold.
