Last Updated:
Following Ranya Rao’s arrest on March 4, officials raided her residence at Nandwani Mansion in Lavelle Road. The search led to the seizure of Rs 2.67 crore in cash and gold worth Rs 2.06 crore.
While frisking Ranya Rao at Kempegowda International Airport, the officials found 14.2 kg of foreign-origin gold worth Rs 12.56 crore inside her jacket.
Kannada actress Ranya Rao was taken into custody by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) on Sunday evening at Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) for smuggling gold. During the investigation, Rao claimed that she was blackmailed into smuggling gold.
The police also detained Constable Basavaraju and recorded a statement regarding his involvement in helping Rao at the airport. Following her arrest on March 4, officials raided her residence at Nandwani Mansion in Lavelle Road. The search led to the seizure of Rs 2.67 crore in cash and gold worth Rs 2.06 crore. The officials took three large boxes from her house after the raid. The total seizure stands at Rs 17.29 crore.
How Ranya Rao Was Arrested
Upon landing at KIA from Dubai on an Emirates flight, the actress tried to bypass security checks with the help of police constable Basavaraju, who accompanied her. However, the DRI, who had a heads-up about her activities, caught her red-handed with the gold consignment. While frisking her, the officials found 14.2 kg of foreign-origin gold worth Rs 12.56 crore inside her jacket. Following the arrest, Ranya Rao was taken to the DRI office at Nagavara for further investigation.
Ranya Rao has acted in several Kannada and Tamil films and is the stepdaughter of K Ramachandra Rao, the DGP of Karnataka State Police Housing Corporation. Officials suspected the actress frequented trips to Dubai with her husband, Jatin, despite having no business or family ties there. Investigations have discovered that she often received police escorts to sneak past security checks at the airport.
Ranya Rao’s multiple trips abroad in the recent months are now under scanner as she didn’t have any stated business in Dubai or other countries. Her husband is also likely to be quizzed by agencies.
Rao has been remanded to judicial custody for 14 days under the Customs Act of 1962. The actress is reportedly in the quarantine cell, Parappana Agrahara, for investigation.
