SOHAIL SARFRAZ & MUHAMMAD ALI
ISLAMABAD/ KARACHI: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has unearthed a massive fraud at Jinnah International Airport, Karachi, where high-value electronic consignments were being removed illegally without filing Goods Declarations (GDs) or paying Customs duties and taxes.
The scam, purportedly orchestrated by employees of a foreign based ground-handling company, which was also the custodian of the goods, in collusion with unscrupulous importers, involved the use of fake and forged documents issued by the company employees to remove electronic goods worth hundreds of millions from the airport.
It is learnt that the Federal Tax Ombudsman (FTO) has also taken notice (Suo Motu Investigation) of the scam and directed the FBR to investigate possible involvement of Customs staff in the whole issue.
This company has terminal operations in Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad to deal with clearance of air cargo. Another aspect is to investigate that since how long such kind of illegal clearances were taking place at airports.
According to the FBR, the “fraud” came to light after credible intelligence was received, and promptly acted upon to strengthen controls at the Karachi airport. The timely intervention led to the seizure of a consignment valued at Rs 103 million, including laptops, iPads, iPhones, MacBooks, PlayStations, and memory cards, before it could be spirited away. Apart from this, two consignments were found fraudulently cleared on the basis of fake gate passes. The Collectorate of Customs Airport Karachi immediately lodged two FIRs and also arrested employees of the company involved in the case.
Investigations have since confirmed that five consignments in total were illegally removed through this fraudulent modus operandi. All were shipped from the UAE by a Dubai-based company. These consignments, packed in two pallets, weighing around 900–1000 kg each, were deliberately concealed from the Customs WeBOC system, preventing GD filings and enabling their clearance through fake gate passes. The total estimated value of evaded duty and taxes involved in illegal removal of the five consignments is Rs. 384 million.
Employees of the company manipulated their computerised iCargo system to conceal airway bills for issuance of fake gate passes for illegal removal of high value electronic goods. Customs investigators have also highlighted the foreign based company’s refusal to provide CCTV footage and critical records despite repeated requests, raising serious suspicion of complicity at senior management level.
FIRs have been lodged and accused have been arrested while efforts are under way to recover the evaded amounts. Further FIRs and arrests are on the cards as FBR resolves to leave no stone unturned to recover the evaded amount.
The chairman FBR and Member Customs have emphasised that no leniency will be shown to custodians and Customs functionaries who fail in their duty. This operation showed the resolve of the FBR to protect national revenue and restore public trust.
