Customs uncovers theft of goods at ports

Customs post-clearance audits have revealed a large-scale theft of goods from containers intercepted at Karachi and Bin Qasim ports.

According to Shiraz Ahmed, Director of Customs Post Clearance Audit (PCA), South, goods worth Rs83 million were stolen from the Bin Qasim International Container Terminal and Karachi International Container Terminal.

Three cases have been registered against Messrs Sadiq Jahan Lahori & Company, Messrs Glowell Industries (Pvt) Limited, and Messrs Zains Brands, following a preliminary investigation and gathered evidence.

Authorities are also investigating the involvement of customs officers and port authorities, raising concerns over how these consignments were cleared without payment of the penalties imposed on the importers.

Under the orders of Director General Post Clearance Audit Chaudhry Zulfiqar Ali, a PCA team led by Director South, Shiraz Ahmed, uncovered this scam.

The confiscated goods, including machine parts, electronic items, aluminum sheets, and more, were allegedly stolen with the collusion of customs officers.

According to Shiraz Ahmed, PCA South received intelligence that a cartel of three importers was systematically stealing seized goods from the ports. The concerned officers conducted a thorough review of the data, which led to the identification of the three fraudulent importers: Sadiq Jahan Lahori & Company, Glowell Industries (Pvt) Limited, and Zains Brands Industries (Pvt) Ltd. These companies had illegally cleared the confiscated goods without paying fines amounting to Rs28 million.

Sources revealed that the authorities had initially stopped the consignments of these importers and referred them to the Adjudication Collectorate for further action. The Adjudication Collectorates imposed fines totaling Rs28 million on the importers for the clearance of seized consignments. However, the importers, allegedly in collaboration with customs officers and port staff, managed to steal the confiscated goods without paying the imposed penalties.

The PCA South has now registered three separate cases against the importers, their associates, and clearing agents.