KARACHI: The Customs Collectorate of Appraisement East has filed a First Information Report against Muhammad Ishaque, owner of M/s Muhammad Ishaque (NTN No1297375-7), located at 19 Chamber Lane Road, Lahore and directors/involved persons of M/s United Marine Agencies (Pvt) Ltd., located at 8th Floor, Bahria Complex-IV, Gizzri, Clifton, Karachi and owner/partner of M/s Churra and Co (Chal376) at P.No202, Uni Centre, I.I. Chundrigar Road, Karachi. The collectorate has started investigation into the matter in which wrong port of loading was deliberately feeded in the WeBOC system of the Customs Department.
Malik Muhammad Hashim, Preventive Officer, Appraisement East, Customs House, Karachi, has filed the FIR in this regard. He found that freight forwarder showed incorrect port of loading to evade tax and duty.
According to FIR, Muhammad Ishaque imported two consignments declared to contain mesh fabric. Hashim claimed that incorrect information was submitted to save Rs 79, 381 and case has been registered under Section 19, 32 (I), 32 (II), 32A, 79 of the Customs Act 1969 punishable under clause 10 (A), 14, 14A and 46 of Section 156 (I) of the Customs Act 1969 read with Import (Control) Act 1950.
Hashim said that the information in this regard was shared by the Customs Appraisement West Karachi, by which the Appraisement East learnt that M/s United Marine Agencies (Pvt) Ltd., Karachi, allegedly committed fraud by issuing fake bills of landing in place of the original ones.
He further said that during investigation, it was observed that freight forwarders/co-loader/shipping agent M/s United Marine Agencies, in connivance with the accused importer, have been involved in the clearance of the goods by submitting wrong information.
He added that goods were actually shipped from Singapore but the M/s United Marine Agencies (Pvt) Limited, Karachi, while filing the Import General Manifest (IGM) in WeBOC fraudulently manipulated the shipper’s name as Changshu Diwang Weaving Co Ltd’, Shanghai, China and port of loading as Shanghai, China.
“The consignments were shipped from Singapore through M/s Korea Marine Transport Company Limited (shipping lines) whose master shipping agent was M/s United Marine Agencies (Private) Limited, Karachi. However, they authorized M/s United Marine Agencies (Private) Limited who filed the IGM with incorrect information.”
Malik Hashim mentioned that M/s United Marine Agencies (Private) Limited, Karachi in connivance of with importer electronically fed incorrect/false information with ulterior motives in the WeBOC at the time of filing IGM and issued manipulated ‘Bill of Lading’ showing wrong shipper’s name and country of origin instead of actual particulars/information mentioned in the `Master Bill of Lading by M/s Korea Marine Transport Company Limited.
He pointed out that it has been observed that the subjected goods were wrongly declared to avail inadmissible concession of Pak-China FTA regime under SRO 659(I)/2007.
