FBR lodges FIR against steel importer

Directorate General of Intelligence and Investigation-FBR (Customs Enforcement) Regional Office, Karachi claimed on Wednesday to have caught an importer, who is reportedly involved in liberating duty unpaid imported GP steel sheet coils weighting 2,150.365 metric tons from customs public bonded warehouse, it was learnt.
According to an FIR lodged by the Directorate, credible information was received by the Directorate, which revealed that the importers of GP steel sheets were involved liberating huge quantities of dutiable bonded goods from customs public bonded warehouse located at Hawksbay Road, Karachi in connivance with the warehouse keeper and other accomplices.
It said that the consignments of GP steel sheet coils of secondary quality were declared as alloy steel sheets coils to claim assessment of the same under PCT heading 7225.9900 attracting 10 percent customs duty against the actual PCT 7210.4910 chargeable to 20 percent customs duty.
Such consignments were released by MCC, Port Qasim, provisionally under section 81 of the Customs Act, 1969 against securities for the differential amounts pending chemical analysis/lab test of the representative samples from designated Lab at Rawalpindi. Subsequently the assessments were finalised as per declaration without the requisite test reports.
It said that the samples were either not sent for lab test with the active connivance of their clearing agents or assessments were finalized as per declarations ignoring lab reports. Moreover, it said that around 19 such consignments, imported by the accused importer, were cleared through their clearing agents from MCC, Port Muhammad Bin Qasim against goods declarations for warehousing in customs public bonded warehouse during the period of Sep 2014 to July 2015.
However, major portion of the warehoused goods was illegally removed by the importer from the bonded warehouse with the active connivance of the warehouse keeper and other accomplices. In order to verify veracity of information, the relevant goods declarations were scrutinised which revealed that goods were cleared through MCC, Port Qasim for warehousing the same in customs public bonded warehouse.
The goods were declared as alloy steel coils of secondary quality (PCT heading 7225.9900) however the examination staff of the Collectorate reported the same to be GP steel sheet coils of secondary quality (PCT heading 7210.4910). On dispute, the goods were provisionally cleared under Section 81 of the Customs Act, 1969 after taking samples of each consignment for lab test from designated Lab at Rawalpindi and submission of securities for the differential amount of duty and taxes.
It further said that since warehousing of the goods from Sep 2014 till February 27. 2017, only 3 goods declarations for ex-bonding of only 300 metric tons of the said commodity were filed by the accused importer while no goods declaration for ex-bonding and payment of duty and taxes on remaining goods were filed despite lapse of stipulated period in terms of Section 98 of the Customs Act of 1969.
Following the ex-bonding of only 300 metric tons of steel sheet coils from the total quantity of 3,171.933 metric tons, around 2,871.933 metric tons of said the commodity had to remain available in the bonded premises. However, the staff of the Directorate during interrogation came to know that a considerable quantity of said bonded goods had been delivered to the accused importer from the bonded warehouse without filing of ex-bond goods declarations and payment of duties and taxes.
On further interrogation the accused warehouse keeper provided the relevant files of gate passes showing delivery of goods pertaining to under reference 19 consignments from time to time during the period Oct, 2014 to Nov, 2016. It was also stated by the accused warehouse keeper that the bonded goods were also under the liens of various banks hence the same were delivered to the accused importers after receipt of NOCs from the concerned banks through muqaddam.
The relevant record files pertaining to banks liens, the gate passes showing quantity and weight of the delivered goods along with vehicle number, the bond ledger showing ex-bonding of only 300 metric tons against ex-bond GDs and remaining goods in balance duly confirmed the fact that huge quantity of dutiable bonded goods were clandestinely and illegally removed from the bonded premises, the FIR said.
The import value of illegally removed goods on the basis of value assessed by the clearance Collectorate is worked out Rs 112.625 million and evaded amount of customs duty and other taxes comes to Rs 66.448 million which is recoverable from the accused persons.
The FIR further stated that the role of Customs staff of the clearance Collectorate MCC, Port Qasim, Karachi, Collectorate MCC, Appraisement (West) Karachi, clearing agents and other associates would be determined during the course of investigation. Further investigation was underway.