KARACHI: Pakistan Customs’ investigation officer has informed the Special Customs Taxation and Anti-Smuggling Court that Rs 6.54 million out of Rs 6.75 million in terms of of evaded customs duty and taxes has been recovered from M/s Paramount Spinning Mills Limited after lodging an FIR against it.
Investigation officer Syed Abbas Raza told the court that the company has forwarded demand draft in favour of collector of Customs Exports Port Qasim, Karachi after the case was registered against its directors.
He told the Judge that Sheikh Riaz Ahmed, Abdul Shakoor, Tanveer Ahmed and Naseer Ahmed, the directors of M/s Paramount Spinning Mills Limited, and Safeer Ahmed proprietor of M/s Aliz International and Mirza Muhammad Kamil Baig proprietor of M/s Union Enterprises have been released on bail.
According to the prosecution, M/s Paramount Spinning Mills Limited imported 50 consignments of Zippers YKK Brand into Tariff Area from M/s YKK Pakistan (Pvt) Limited, Export Processing Zone, Karachi.
M/s Aliz International filed 34 GDs involving Rs 13.363 million with duty and taxes estimated at Rs 4.49 million. Whereas M/s Hi-Ness Enterprises filed 10 GDs valued at Rs 4.14 million with duty and taxes to the tune of Rs 1.33 million and 6 GDs worth Rs 2.841 million with duty and taxes of Rs 927,674 were filed by M/s Union Enterprises.
All the consignments were cleared under SRO 492(I)/2009 without payment of duty and taxes on indemnity bond and post dated cheques. Later it transpired that manufacturing unit of M/s Paramount Spinning Mills, Lahore has been closed for over a year and the importers had failed to fulfil legal requirements. The post dated chaeques were sent to the banks but they were dishonored.
Subsequently an FIR was registered against the importer and clearing agents for fraudulently evading customs duty and taxes.
The hearing of case was adjourned till October 29.