Customs officials say FBR has written letter to Foreign Affairs Ministry to get permission to examine diplomatic consignments
KARACHI: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has started a probe into the clearance of 58 consignments on the documents of Saudi consulate from the Port Qasim Collectorate in July, Customs Today learnt on Tuesday.
The seized goods include laptops, mobile phones, batteries and auto-parts, which tried to clear.
The Port Qasim Collectorate examining staff found that some people were trying to clear electronics worth billions of rupees on the documents of Saudi consulate.
Subsequently, the Port Qasim Collectorate officials made a seizure report and forwarded it to the Collectorate of Customs Adjudication-I for legal proceedings. The seizure report was made against unidentified accused, as no one claimed the authority of the imported consignments.
On the other hand, the Saudi consulate officials also refused to claim the ownership of the seized goods.
Afterwards, the Collectorate of Customs Adjudication-I in its Order-in-Original (ONO) ordered officials concerned to confiscate the goods and auction them.
Meanwhile, the FIA officials have included officials of the Saudi consulate and Pakistan Customs in the investigation.
An FIA investigation official said the officials concerned of the Saudi consulate have also been grilled.
“The Saudi consul general in Karachi told us that the staff we (FIA) wanted to interrogate has been sent back to Saudi Arabia,” the FIA official added.
He also said that the FIA authorities were in touch with the Collectorate of Customs Adjudication-I officials to know the current status of the case.
The Pakistan Customs officials said the Federal Board of Revenue has written a letter to the Foreign Affairs Ministry in which it sought permission to examine diplomatic consignments.
