Acting on a tip-off, the police in Nagrakata of Jalpaiguri intercepted an SUV headed towards Siliguri from Assam on Saturday night and seized over 8 kilos of gold bars worth more than Rs 4.5 crore.

Three persons, Mumbai resident Santosh Gajape and Assam residents Krishna Majumdar and Mantosh Biswas, have been arrested in this connection.

D. Sherpa, the additional superintendent of police (rural) of Jalpaiguri, said on Sunday that Nagrakata police station OC Sanju Burman got information of gold being smuggled by road via the Dooars from Assam to Siliguri in an SUV.

Burman immediately instructed his officers to start checking all vehicles moving through NH31. At night, they stopped an SUV coming from Assam. Frisking the vehicle, the police team found concealed gold bars.

“The three persons in the car were arrested. We have sent them to court on Sunday and will file a petition to seek police custody. They need to be interrogated on their links and whether they are only carriers or members of a gold smuggling racket,” said Sherpa.

According to him, the gold bars altogether weigh 8.297 kilos, the value of which is over Rs 4.5 crore. The vehicle has also been seized.