Rs 54 lakh currency seized, 1 held in Mangaluru

MANGALURU: A person from Uttara Kannada was arrested at Mangaluru International Airport on Wednesday night for possessing foreign currency in excess of stipulated norms amounting to Rs 54.74 lakh. The accused is Kamar Mohamed Moula Kadira, 35, native of Nawayat Mohalla, Manki, Honnavar. The arrest was made by Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) with the assistance from the Customs department at the airport. The cache included huge quantity of foreign currency notes of different countries. The foreign currency seized included US dollar, Saudi riyals, British pounds, Qatar riyals, Omani riyals, Bahrain dinars and Kuwaiti dinars. The total value of the currency under seizure was Rs 54,74,754. Kamar was to travel to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia via Dubai by Air India flight IX 813 on Wednesday night. He was arrested and produced before the court. DRI sources said investigation was in progress to find the reason behind him carrying such huge amounts of currency. -TOI