Kottayam: Alert customs officials nabbed a smuggler Navas, 37, at Kozhikkode International Airport and recovered 346 gm gold from him.

Navas had arrived at the airport from Abu Dhabi on Monday night. During routine screening, the officials got suspicious and subjected him to x-ray screening and found seven gold balls in his stomach.

He was taken to a private hospital near the airport to retrieve the gold. But the doctors were unable to take the balls out and he was referred to Kozhikode Medical College hospital on Tuesday. It took three days for the doctors to take the gold out by cleaning his stomach on Thursday. Six balls were taken out on Thursday morning. By afternoon the seventh ball was also extracted.

Navas is a carrier of a smuggling gang who give him Rs 10,000 and a free ticket for bringing in the material.