Kozhikode: Police foiled an attempt to abduct a woman carrying 817 grams of gold at the Calicut International Airport in Karipur in the early hours of Monday. Two members of a gang allegedly involved in the attempted kidnap have been arrested.

The incident occurred around 3 am on Monday when a police team on duty at the airport noticed a group of people behaving suspiciously in the arrival area. The police began monitoring their movements and soon found them following a woman passenger who had walked out of the arrival gate.

According to Karippur police, the woman, Abhirami (27), a native of Vandanmedu in Idukki, was heading towards the parking area with a man who had come to receive her when the gang intercepted them and tried to seize her trolley bag. A scuffle broke out between the gang members and the man accompanying her, prompting the police to intervene.

During the confrontation, one of the gang members attacked a Home Guard, Murali Krishna, who was on duty at the airport. The gang members also allegedly attempted to run over a Special Squad police officer with an Innova car while trying to escape. The officer managed to save himself by jumping to the roadside, police said.

Police detained two of the gang members, the woman passenger and Harshal (40), a native of Ernakulam who had reached the airport to collect the gold from her.

Interrogation revealed that the gold was sent through Abhirami by Swalih, a native of Thamarassery in Kozhikode. A gang of around 10 people had allegedly reached the airport in a Toyota Innova and a Maruti Swift car to snatch the gold from her.

The arrested men were identified as Sayanth (28) and Babilesh (40), both natives of Kallachi in Nadapuram.

A search of Abhirami's baggage by police led to the recovery of 14 gold plates concealed inside an emergency lamp. The gold weighed 817 grams after cleaning and was estimated to be worth more than ₹1.10 crore.

Police said the gold would be handed over to the Customs Department for further action under the Customs Act, which carries a potential prison term of more than seven years in this case.

Abhirami and Harshal, along with the seized gold, ₹67,000 allegedly kept by Harshal to pay Abhirami as commission, and a Maruti Alto car, will be handed over to Customs.

Police said the arrested persons were involved in several similar cases in the past.