FAISALABAD: The Customs Anti Smuggling Organization (ASO), Mianwali has seized smuggled items worth Rs 15,50,000 involving customs duty and taxes worth Rs 87,376. The ASO team also impounded van worth Rs 10,00,000 during a raid action.
Sources told Customs Today that Additional Collector Muhammad Saeed Asad received credible information regarding smuggling attempts. He formed an ASO team comprising Superintendent Chaudhary Sardar Muhammad, Muhammad Umar Bhatti and Inspector Azhar Hussain Jafari, driver Riasat Hussain, Sepoys Faiz Ahmad, Sher Ahmad and Muhammad Abdullah.
The team intercepted a truck bearing registration no. LEF-2540 near police check post Dagil district Bhakkar. The ASO team recovered 350 kilogram of foreign origin cloth in different colour and design made in China.
The officials asked the driver to produce documents regarding legal import of the goods. The driver who identified himself Muhammad Shafique son of Muhammad Hanif said that goods were loaded from Lahore truck stand. He also mentioned named of owner Muhammad Shakeel Shahid, Farikh Shahzad, and Ajab Khan but he could not show the documents regarding the legal import.
After his failure, the ASO team seized the goods and forwarded the case to Customs Adjudication for further proceedings. Collector Zulfiqar Chaudhary has appreciated the performance of ASO team which foiled various smuggled bids in the region.
