Customs bare ‘newsprint’ shoes, cards racket

An attempt by a trader to import shoes and card packs on the pretext of importing newsprint and pay reduced duty has been thwarted by the Customs when they made a sudden inspection on a container.

If the goods from Singapore valued at Rs. 22 million were cleared the government would have suffered a loss of more than Rs. 16 million, Customs Assistant Director Mali Piyasena said.

Investigations revealed that a false address had been declared to clear the items, but following the detention of two wharf clerks, one of the importers had turned up. The two clerks were remanded for two weeks.

Mr. Piyasena said the false declaration was to avoid the payment of the recently imposed tax of Rs. 300 per pair of shoes and Rs. 25 per card pack. The container consisted of 22,000 pairs of shoes and 108,000 packs of cards.Further investigations are underway.