This Article is From Jul 02, 2013

Four trucks, filled with crores and diamonds, caught in Mumbai

Four trucks, filled with crores and diamonds, caught in Mumbai
Mumbai: They look like four regular trucks, covered with tarpaulin, the paint peeling in some parts.

But their cargo is jaw-dropping. Cash, gold and diamonds - so much cash and so many diamonds that 17 hours after they were grounded in Mumbai, the notes are still being counted from 102 canvas bags at the city's income tax headquarters.

The trucks were stopped on Monday night at the Mumbai Central station before the cargo could be loaded onto the Gujarat Mail.

Sources say the National Investigation Agency or NIA had been tipped off a week ago and had involved the Income Tax department of Mumbai because a huge amount of cash was involved.

The NIA though has ruled out the possibility that the money was meant to fund terror attacks.

Sources in the income tax department suspect that a part the consignment - worth 100 crores and rising - is part of a hawala or money-laundering scheme run by local couriers, 47 of who have been detained.

The trucks were being escorted by the Mumbai police when they were pulled over. The police says it's not unusual for local couriers to request escorts for security.

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