Karachi (HRNW) – The Sindh High Court has granted bail to cargo agent Asad in a case involving the alleged clearance of electronic goods worth millions of rupees from Karachi Airport without payment of applicable customs duties and taxes.
The court ordered the accused to submit surety bonds of Rs. 200,000 for each case. The hearing was conducted by Justice Adnan Iqbal Chaudhry.
According to the government prosecutor, customs authorities had investigated alleged irregularities in the cargo handling operations of Jerys Danata, during which it was alleged that certain officers and employees facilitated the clearance of goods without payment of customs duties and taxes.
The prosecution informed the court that iPhones, PlayStations, and MacBooks worth more than Rs. 549.3 million were allegedly cleared, on which approximately Rs. 350 million in duties and taxes were payable. Customs authorities registered a total of five cases against the accused persons in connection with the matter.
The prosecutor stated that investigations revealed customs officials would verify documents and then forward them to Jerys staff for further processing. It was alleged that the accused took advantage of the lack of real-time integration between Jerys and the customs system.
According to the prosecution, specific bills were allegedly deleted and not uploaded into the customs system, causing imported goods to remain hidden from the customs clearance system. It was further alleged that consignments were removed from the Jerys warehouse using unrelated Goods Declarations and invoices.
During the hearing, the court observed that the applicant’s responsibility was limited to electronically filing entries in the customs system. Justice Adnan Iqbal Chaudhry noted that in four cases, the electronic entries were registered under the names of other cargo agents.
The court further observed that the delivery notes or gate passes related to the allegedly missing goods did not contain the applicant’s signatures. The court also noted that the alleged transfer of money from beneficiaries of the applicant’s actions had not yet been established.
The court observed that bail had already been granted to other accused persons who had named the applicant during the investigation. Based on these circumstances, the Sindh High Court approved bail for accused Asad.
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Important Note (Disclaimer):
This report is based on proceedings before the Sindh High Court and arguments presented by the parties. The allegations in the case are sub judice, and all accused individuals are presumed innocent unless proven guilty by a court of law. HRNW is committed to impartial journalism, due process, and respecting the legal rights of all parties.
