KARACHI: Gadani Customs has apprehended huge quantity of contraband items including betel nuts and Indian-origin gutka worth millions of rupees in two separate successful raids.
According to the details, Collector Customs Gadani Muhammad Yaqoob Mako received authentic information regarding smuggling of contraband items in huge quantity through the land route, after which a team was constituted to nab the culprits and to recover the smuggled goods.
On the directives of Collector Customs Gadani Muhammad Yaqoob Mako, a team under the supervision of Deputy Collector Ahsanullah Shah was constituted to conduct raids at different places.
The team beefed up the surveillance as well as strict checking of the vehicles was held at the entry and exit check posts of the Gadani. During the close watch, the team of ASO under the supervision of Deputy Collector Ahsanullah Shah several vehicles were checked whereas the documents of the vehicles were also investigated.
After the twenty four hours of hardship and surveillance, the Customs team intercepted two trucks full of apple and onion. While searching the Customs team found smuggled goods hidden and mixed with the apple as well as onion sacs.
All the sacs laden with various goods were completely searched. During the search, the Customs team found 4.4 tons of smuggled betel nuts, 736,000 pouches of Indian-origin gutka weighting 1411.92kg, 8400kg of smuggled cloth as well as various sizes of tyres which worth millions of rupees in the market.
The source informed that the smuggled goods were being smuggled to Karachi from Quetta and after the several seizures conducted by the Customs, now the demand of the betel nuts and Indian-origin gukta has shoot up.
The case has been registered whereas the recovered smuggled goods along with trucks have also been taken into the custody by the Customs officers.