In a 'Taskaree'-style heist, eight people stole gold jewellery worth Rs 2.5 crore from the Ahmedabad airport. The 2.5 kg consignment, which was scheduled to reach Bengaluru, was never found at the destination.
The gold heist involving the airline and the airport staff was meticulously planned and executed by the eight accused individuals. The theft occurred as seven bags of gold jewellery were handed over for shipment from Ahmedabad to Bengaluru. The Titan-manufactured ornaments were being transported through an Akasa Air cargo service from the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport. However, one of the parcels, weighing around 13 kg and containing over 2.107 kg of gold, never reached Bengaluru.
How Did They Carry Out Heist?
The key conspirator of the heist was Roshan Patel, who works as a cleaning supervisor. Zaid Hasan Ansari helped; the airline's security in charge helped shift the gold from the highly secured zone, evading all the CCTV-surveillance spots.
One of the conspirators, Salim Mohammad Ansari, booked tickets as a passenger to enter the airport. When the seven parcels reached the airport, the parcel with the gold jewellery was separated and shifted to the trolley on the loader Jayesh Parmar.
The parcel was then handed to Ansari, who transported the stolen gold out of Ahmedabad using the commercial flight route. Nothing was traced in the security check, as the airport staff were connected to the heist.
After the theft, Sultan Sama and his associates allegedly melted the gold and sold it to different jewellers. The investigation has now expanded to Ahmedabad and Rajkot, where police have also arrested alleged buyers of the stolen gold.
Earlier, the accused had attempted to carry out theft three times in March but failed due to the high-level security.
Investigatons Underway
Police have arrested eight accused so far, while four others remain absconding. During searches, investigators recovered Rs 69.24 lakh in cash along with gold and silver jewellery worth Rs 1.02 crore from the accused. Authorities said valuables worth more than Rs 1.72 crore have been seized so far.
The police said that the largest share of the proceeds from the stolen gold was allegedly meant for Zaid Ansari. Police said recoveries ranging from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 3 lakh were made from different accused, with the highest amount recovered from Ansari.
Airport police said further investigation is underway to trace additional valuables and identify others linked to the alleged smuggling and sale network.