A man from Malappuram in Kerala was nabbed by customs officials at the Cochin International Airport (CIAL) for hiding 1.13 kg of gold underneath a wig. He was arriving from Sharjah in the UAE.

Noushad, who was held with gold in its compound form, had shaved the hair at the centre of his head so as to make his false hair look believable. He had placed the gold at the centre of his shaved head, but was caught on Friday as the officials realised that he was wearing a wig. Investigation revealed that Noushad is a carrier.

The gold was stored in the compound form, which makes it look like a paste, and cannot be traced by metal detectors. The compound undergoes some procedures to be restored to its pure form.

Several gold smugglers have been caught at the CIAL, who conceal the precious metal in private and other body parts. However, Noushad's creativity remains unprecedented as this was the first instance of smuggling gold under a wig from the airport.

A man was arrested in June during security check at a Spanish airport for trying to smuggle cocaine in a wig.

Earlier, another man had successfully smuggled gold compound through Calicut airport, and officials got whiff of the matter only after he filed a complaint that he was kidnapped by the smuggling mafia on exiting the airport.