QUETTA: Customs Enforcement Quetta has lodged an FIR against M/s Sharafuddin & Brothers Clearing and Forwarding Agent, along with Inspector Customs Appraisement Quetta, Dashti Khan. The case revolves around a fraudulent attempt to export Pakistani rice under the guise of caustic soda flakes.
On the instructions of Chief Collector Baluchistan Yaqoob Mako, Collector Quetta Tahir Qureshi and his team pursued the case and detected this novel scam.
M/s Sitara Chemical Industries Ltd, Faisalabad, had filed a Goods Declaration (GD) No. QCME-SB-544 on July 31, 2024, in the WeBOC system for the export of 200 metric tons of caustic soda flakes, packed in 2000 bags. The consignment, valued at $100,000, was to be exported through their clearing agent, M/s Sharafuddin & Brothers, Chaman. The GD included images of the packing list, commercial invoices, customs entry pass, and payment receipts.
The consignment was purportedly carried by four trucks with registration numbers JV-0742, NLE-383, TKM-471, and TKT-015. Inspector Dashti Khan reported no discrepancies during the examination, and the consignment was cleared by the Collectorate of Customs (Appraisement), Quetta. However, Gate Out Officer Sikandar Ali noticed that the trucks were loaded with Pakistani rice instead of caustic soda flakes and halted the gate out process.
Upon further investigation, it was revealed that the four vehicles were indeed loaded with 200 metric tons of Pakistani rice, misdeclared as caustic soda flakes. Notices were issued under Section 26 of the Customs Act, 1969, to both the exporter and the clearing agent for further information. The exporter, M/s Sitara Chemicals, denied authorizing the clearing agent for the consignment clearance and provided several documents for investigation.
The investigation uncovered that the clearing agent, M/s Sharafuddin & Brothers, had fraudulently changed the description of the goods from rice to caustic soda flakes in the WeBOC system. Despite multiple notices and reminders, the clearing agent did not respond, further implicating their involvement in the fraud. The Customs staff of the Appraisement Collectorate is also suspected of colluding in this misdeclaration.
The case highlights the ongoing efforts of Customs Enforcement Quetta to curb fraudulent activities and ensure the integrity of export processes.