Customs officials seized 98 mobile phones worth Tk 1 crore 76 lakh 40 thousand from four women at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport (Dhaka airport), uncovering sophisticated smuggling methods involving mid-air handovers.

On Monday, Joint teams from intelligence agencies, Customs and Air Force's AVSEC unit recovered 102 phones from passengers arriving on Biman Bangladesh Airlines flight BG-148 from Dubai via Chattogram at 11:30am. After allowing each woman one phone, authorities confiscated the remaining 98 devices.

Airport customs confirmed the matter, stating intelligence alerts prompted heightened surveillance of all passengers before the seizure.

Four women, Samia Sultana, Shamima Akter, Zaynab Begum and Nusrat, had concealed phones on their bodies using special techniques whilst crossing the Green Channel. Officers found 35 iPhone 17 Pro Max handsets, 55 iPhone 15 models and 12 Google Pixel phones during body searches.

Passengers failed to provide information about the devices. Bangladesh law permits travellers to bring only one mobile phone without declaration.

Smuggling syndicates frequently target Dubai and Sharjah routes, according to reports. When enforcement tightens, smugglers adapt tactics. Recent patterns show associates boarding transit flights at Chattogram, receiving contraband mid-flight before landing in Dhaka.

Gold, mobile phones and cigarettes remain the most smuggled items through Dhaka's international airport. Authorities continue monitoring high-risk routes as smugglers employ increasingly creative concealment methods to evade detection.