ISLAMABAD: The Customs Appellate Tribunal set aside the ONO of appeal against M/s Smart Zone Pvt Ltd and fined Rs.98 million against the company’s proven involvement in smuggling of non-duty paid smuggled foreign origin goods via TCS cargo containers.
According to the details, Customs Appellate Tribunal dismissed the ONO and give orders M/s Smart Zone to pay three times more duty taxes in worth of Rs6.243 million against smuggled goods while imposed Rs1 million penalty on CEO of the company as well as fine penalty of Rs1.4 million on two distributors of smuggled goods.
Customs Intelligence and Investigations Additional Director Shahid Jan said that the appeal No07/CU/IB/2018.08/CU/IB/2018, 09/CU/IB/2018 and 10/CU/2018 are filed against Order-in-Original (ONO) No.44/2015 dated 29.05.2018 passed by Collector Customs Adjudication Islamabad and are disposed of through judgment.
He added that the brief facts of the case as reported in impugned ONO are that an information was received that a huge quantity of foreign origin electronic items has allegedly been smuggled into Pakistan and dumped at TCS godown at Rawalpindi.
Telling the judgment details, he narrated that the Customs I&I staff visited the TCS warehouse after obtaining search warrant from judicial magistrate in 2015 which was led to recovery of foreign origin goods such as air-conditioners, washing machines, microwaves and LED TVs.
He added that the said goods were dumped for distribution to market of various cities through TCS Pvt Ltd, Shahid told that the stickers bearing marks “via Karachi in Transit to Afghanistan” were found pasted on the recovered goods.
Additional Director I&I told that the TCS failed to provide any evidence regarding legal import however TCS officers told that these goods are belong to M/s Smart Zone Pvt and stored under an agreement between TCS and Smart Zone, the I&I though seized the smuggled goods and bring them to State Warehouse while during investigation the I&I found that same party’s smuggled goods dumped at TCS Lahore from where in CIF amount of Rs.36 million goods seized.
