KARACHI: Pakistan Customs has detected a case of fraud by misdeclaring the origin and submitting fabricated invoices of 100 percent lower than the actual letter of credit values to evade huge amount of duty and taxes.
The authorities have lodged an FIR to initiate criminal proceedings against the importer M/s. Zeeshan Trading Company.
The FIR, which was lodged by Muhammad Yaqoob, Appraising Officer, Model Customs Collectorate of PaCCS, Custom House, Karachi, revealed that customs authorities had received credible information regarding evasion of a huge amount of revenue by way of mis-declaration of description and grade in the import of ethyl acetate.
Enterprises and the importer M/s. Zeeshan Trading Company along with the reminders to the indenters, for the provision of data. In response to these notices, both the indenters sought some time for the supply of data. M/s. Olympia Enterprises (indenter) and M/s. Brother Trading Corporation have submitted the import record of the import of M/s. Zeeshan Trading Company along with the literature of the product. The literature of the manufacturer, M/s. Korea Alcohol Industrial Co. (Goods supplied by M/s. KC&A Corporation South Korea) confirmed the manufacturing of ethyl acetate 99.8 percent only. Whereas goods were got released by declaring various grades including technical grade and a huge amount of taxes were evaded.
The proforma invoices and the copies of letter of credit provided by the indenter indicate the prices $980/MT on April 10, 2009, $1020/MT on April 21, 2009, $1066/MT on May 13, 2009, $1060/MT on June 04, 2009 and $1080/MT on August 25, 2009 for M/s KC&A Corporation, South Korea origin whereas the goods mis-declared by declaring the origin to be Singapore and submitting fabricated invoices of almost 100 percent lower than the actual LC values.
The FIR stated that recoverable amount of duty and taxes in the six cases is Rs.3.8 million. The working has been made in the light of documents provided by the two indenters namely M/s. Brother Trading Corporation for the supplier, M/s. KC&A, Korean and M/s. Olympia for the supplier M/s. LEE CHANG YUNG, Taiwan.
The sources in the customs informed that the owner of M/s. Zeeshan Trading Company has been arrested while the Customs authorities also initiated efforts to arrest others who were benefited in the crime.