The Directorate General Customs Intelligence, Peshawar, has busted a racket involved in the massive misuse of the exemption of duty/taxes available to Export Processing Zone (EPZ) units by illegally removing non-duty paid imported goods under the garb of goods for exports.
Sources told Business Recorder here on Tuesday that taking action on specific information of Director General, Shaukat Ali, Customs Intelligence Peshawar busted the organized gang involved in the massive misuse of exemption of duty/taxes available to EPZs.
Accordingly, an export consignment of the aforesaid industrial unit loaded on Mercedes Benz Trailer bearing Registration No LGN-568 was intercepted at about 1600 hours on 14.12.2017 at Nowshera Kalan. The driver of the vehicle produced a gate pass showing various items loaded on the vehicle for export to Afghanistan.
However, he could not produce other export documents like GD, packing list, invoice etc. Thorough search of the consignment led to recovery of paper products of various sizes and quality in original imported packing, printing ink (in original packing), PS printing plates of high quality in different sizes (in original packing) along with various chemicals stuffed beneath the printed copies of the Holy Quran.
Later on, the clearing agent provided export GD No PEPE-SB-11, dated 13.12.2017, which, on scrutiny, was found irrelevant to the seized goods. Thus, the fraud stood established to the extent of the aforementioned consignment. The manufacturing premises of M/s 4 Brothers International was also raided on 18.12.2017 and huge quantities of imported goods / raw materials were found warehoused therein. However, the manufacturing facility found there consisted of just few junk printing/cutting machines which were lying inoperative /idle.
The printed copies of the Holy Quran found stored there bore the address of printers located in Lahore which further confirmed that the books printed on low quality papers had been brought from local market for the purpose of subsequently exporting the same as having been manufactured by the said unit in EPZ, Risalpur. Further, the machines installed in industrial unit do not have the capacity and modern technology to process the huge quantity of raw material imported free of duty/taxes for producing high quality finished paper products for exports.
Thus, the raw material purportedly consumed in production of such printed books had illegally removed to the local market to evade payment of duty/taxes. From the above, it is apparent that the said unit of EPZ Risalpur are involved in massive evasion of duty/taxes by way of clandestine removal/smuggling of raw materials, imported free of duty/taxes, into the tariff area - that is, local market.
Therefore, duty free goods stored in their godowns have also been seized under relevant provisions of the Customs Act, 1969 and the rules made thereunder. Total value of the seized goods and the vehicle is Rs 436 million (goods worth Rs 421 million and vehicle worth Rs 15 million). An FIR has been lodged by Customs Intelligence Peshawar against M/s 4 Brother International, Clearing Agent, the concerned staff of MCC, Peshawar and the EPZ-authorities. Further investigation is in progress, the sources added.
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