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| Monday, 27 October 2003 |
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by Sarath Malalasekera A consignment of 955 mobile phones and 10 transceivers valued over Rs. 9.6 million belonging to an Indian was forfeited by the Customs while being smuggled into the country, a senior Customs officer told the Daily News yesterday. A special Customs team has been deployed to trace the king pin of this mobile phone racket. The Customs inquiry revealed that the items were found in the baggage accompanied by two passengers who arrived from Singapore by a SriLankan Airlines flight. According to this officer, mobile phones are under Import Control Licence and the moment the smuggling attempts are detected, smugglers introduce a foreigner with the claim that the goods belonged to the foreigner and request permission to re-export them. "This is the modus operandi of mobile phone smugglers," the officer said. Investigations revealed that the Indian national has not stated the number of mobile phones he lost. At no point of time, either before the forfeiture or after forfeiture, has the Indian complained to the Customs that his bags were lost or stolen. The Indian has not made a complaint even to the airline counter at the Bandaranaike International Airport. The "loss" has also not been reported to the airport's security office. Any passenger who does not find his baggage on arrival, either because it has not been loaded from the point of embarkation or because it has been taken away by another passenger, has to make a claim with the mishandled baggage counter near the conveyor belt in the airport's arrival area. All passengers are aware of it, the Customs officer said. This person making an attempt to claim the goods may be the mastermind behind big scale smuggling attempts. |
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