KARACHI: Pakistan Customs has recovered fireworks and explosives weighing 22 tons from a container at West Wharf.

MCC Preventive Karachi Port Control Unit (PCU) had blocked a container at West Wharf, which as per intelligence reports was stuffed with fireworks. The said container imported by M/s A.D International was imported from China and destined to dry port Peshawar.

Collector MCC Preventive Saifuddin Jenejo had approached Collector MCC Appraisement West Dr. Fareed Iqbal Qureshi suggesting a joint examination of the suspected container.

SPO Shamim Akhtar of Preventive, AO Mohammad Ahmed of R&D and EO Jahangir Afzal examined the container and recovered fireworks weighing 22 tons. In the IGM, the container is declared to have containing sanitary fittings and tiles.

Sources said that this consignment was linked to the old fashioned transshipment (TP) cargo replacement scam. The container has been mis-declared in the IGM; the same is supposed to be pilfered during the transit and filled with low-value sanitary fittings and tiles.

However, no FIR has been lodged as yet, as Customs is waiting for a Goods Declaration to be filed or some claimant appeared. Customs wants to a solid case, as in past several such cases were dismissed.