KARACHI: Collector Customs Preventive Dr Iftikhar Ahmed has said that smuggling is not one-time but a continuous crime and the staff is prepared to unearth any possible ways adopted by smugglers.
Collector Dr Iftikhar Ahmed said this while addressing a press conference at the Pakistan Customs building. He highlighted the remarkable performance of the Anti-Smuggling Organization (ASO).
He said that the Customs has been working day and night to avoid every move of the smugglers not only from the Green, Yellow and Red Channels, but also the staff has successfully restricted the smuggling mafia from road and rail routes as well.
The Collector Preventive said that ASO has busted huge quantity of contraband items worth millions of rupees during different successful raids in one week.
He informed that the smugglers are choosing different ways to smuggle their contraband items but the officers and the staff of Customs Preventive ASO have been nightmare for them.
Dr Iftikhar Ahmed, while briefing the media persons, informed that after shutting down the road routes, the smugglers are now using rail routes to smuggle betel nuts along with other contraband items.
The Collector Customs Preventive also said that the smuggling is a continuous crime which smugglers commit through different ways which Customs has apprehended successfully.
During one week, five seizures took place at city station in which huge quantity of betel nuts, Indian-origin gutka and foreign cigarettes worth nearly sixty millions of rupees were busted, said the Collector.
During the press conference, Deputy Collector Customs Preventive Muhammad Faisal said that the raids were conducted on two places of the City Railway Station and without the involvement of the officers it was not possible for the smugglers to transport such huge quantity of smuggled goods. ”We are also investigating to search out the concern officers involved in the heinous crime,” he added.
Hailing the efforts of the Deputy Collector Customs Preventive Muhammad Faisal and Additional Collector Customs Preventive Aamir Theim, Collector Dr Iftekhar Ahmed said that smugglers will choose new ways of smuggling and Customs will restrict them. The investigation has also been initiated to know who booked the consignments while the Customs authorities at the departure point are also in contact to inquire how the smugglers managed to send the consignments, he added.
