15 women busted with Sh31m smuggled gold at JKIA

A view of the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA). 

The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) on Tuesday night intercepted gold and jewellery worth Sh31 million that was being smuggled through the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA).

The contraband was seized from 15 women who were leaving the country.

The agency’s customs officers seized 4.88kg of undeclared gold from the women who were traveling to India through Doha, Qatar.

The 15 were part of a group of 30 women headed to the same destination, the authority said in a statement.

“The travellers are directly associated with three female travellers earlier intercepted entering Mumbai with approximately 1kg of gold concealed internally on August 19, 2021,” KRA Commissioner Customs and Border Control, Ms Lilian Nyawanda, said.

The authority said customs officers, together with a multi-agency team, discovered the undeclared gold and jewellery during a body search just before they boarded their flight. 

“The 15 women were asked to cancel the flight to allow for further investigations. The intercepted gold and jewellery has been deposited in the Customs warehouse,” Ms Nyawanda said.