Kochi: Swapna Suresh, an accused in the Thiruvananthapuram airport gold smuggling case, has said she left the State capital on July 5 immediately after the case was registered.
The Customs (preventive) wing registered the case after making a 30-kg gold seizure on the day. The consignment arrived at the airport on June 30. Swapna Suresh said reached Kochi with family and stayed there for two days before proceeding to Bengaluru. She said co-accused Sandeep joined them from Varkala.
She told the investigators that they met a lawyer and signed a plea to move court.
She said she had quit as secretary to the consul-general in Thiruvananthapuram voluntarily as the official was getting transferred. She said he had offered to take her in at his new place of work. Swapna told the investigators that she was paid a remuneration of $1000 per month (Rs.75,000) for the ‘unofficial’ help extended to the consulate.
Call from a journalist
Swapna Suresh said she received a call from a media person after the gold consignment was seized at the airport.
He had reportedly stated that the seizure was not ‘a diplomatic baggage’ but a personal one addressed to the UAE Consulate. He had reportedly told her that the baggage would be released if the consulate functionary furnished a statement.
The Customs will question this journalist as the call was made immediately after the agency registered a case on July 5. She said she had met this person at a hotel in Thiruvananthapuram in 2018. He had reportedly sought the help of Swapna Suresh to help the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) establish a good relationship’ with the UAE. The investigators are verifying the claims in the statement.
