Investigators learned that they had stolen the 3.27 carat diamonds, while distracting the shopkeeper with the specifications they wanted. (Representational image)

Mumbai: An Asian couple that stole diamonds and swallowed them to smuggle them ran out of luck after they were intercepted by immigration officials at Mumbai airport and sent back to Dubai for criminal prosecution.

The officers said that the diamonds were worth USD 81,000 (3 lakh dirhams) and stolen from a shop at Deira’s Gold Souq area.

After the couple left Dubai, the authorities issued an international alert via Interpol. The accused couple took a flight headed to Hong Kong via Mumbai. The immigration officials at Mumbai airport detained the couple after the flight landed in the city and sent them back to Dubai.

Investigators learned that they had stolen the 3.27 carat diamonds, whi-le distracting the shopkeeper with the specifications they wanted.

Meanwhile, the woman sneaked into one of the glass showcases and stole some diamonds. The wh-ole incident was captured by a CCTV camera. Howe-ver, the shopkeeper realised about the theft only three hours later.

Soon after the shopkeeper informed the police, the CCTV footage was examined and the accused were identified. The woman was seen hiding the stolen diamonds inside her jacket. The airport authorities at Dubai confirmed that the accused couple had already left by a flight. It was then that the UAE police informed their counterparts in India, where the Hong Kong bound flight would transit.

The diamonds were trac-ed inside the gut of the woman following an X-ray scan. The couple confessed to the crime and is being questioned further.