South Indian Kannada film industry’s famous actress Ranya Rao has been arrested in a gold smuggling case. She has been arrested from Bengaluru International Airport on charges of gold smuggling. Actress Rao’s stepfather K. Ramachandra Rao is an IPS officer from Karnataka. According to reports, Ranya was under police investigation after she visited Dubai four times in 15 days. Indian media reported that police seized 14.8 kg of gold from Ranya at the Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru on Monday night.

PTI quoted officials as saying that the arrest was made by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI). After the arrest, Ranya was presented before an economic offences court, which has sent her to judicial custody for 14 days. Ranya is best known for her role opposite Kannada superstar Sudeep in the film ‘Maanikya’ (2014). She has also acted in several other South films. Police are investigating whether she was alone in the gold smuggling operation or part of a larger smuggling network operating between Dubai and India. 33-year-old Ranya Rao is the stepdaughter of senior Karnataka IPS officer K. Ramachandra Rao. Ramachandra is the Director General of Police (DGP) in the Karnataka State Police Housing Corporation. Ranya Rao had arrived at the Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru on an Emirates flight from Dubai. She was under surveillance due to her frequent international travels.