Bid to smuggle 7,000 smartphones foiled

RAWALPINDI: Customs Intelligence conducted an operation at Islamabad Airport and foiled an attempt to smuggle 7,000 smart phones from the Import Cargo section.

Moreover, alleged collusion of customs officials in smuggling of valuable mobile phones on fake NOC has come to surface, sources in the Customs Department said. Sources told The Express Tribune that Customs Intelligence received a report that a clearing agent was trying to smuggle 7,000 expensive smartphones from abroad to Pakistan on a fake NOC and the customs staff has cleared all the mobile phones with alleged collusion. On receiving the information, the smuggling attempt was foiled by taking action in the cargo section.

Customs Intelligence has also arrested a customs clearing agent from the cargo import section. Sources said that the customs agent was helping smuggling expensive mobile phones from abroad to Pakistan on fake NOCs for exporting parts of mobile phones from abroad.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 20^th, 2020.