Karachi’s Airport Customs Collectorate reported that imports valued at Rs3.2 billion were allegedly channeled via two shell firms serving as “market IDs” for hidden importers. The investigation notes that the probe originated from a sweep targeting internet routers brought in lacking the required Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) certification.
Customs first spotted ten import filings that encompassed 71,815 routers processed through the Airport Facilitation Unit without the mandatory PTA certificate, breaching SRO 1172(I)/2021 and applicable import rules. Following adjudication, the shipments were seized and later linked to two firms that appealed the confiscations before the Federal Tax Ombudsman.
Investigation Findings
The probe expanded when a number of persons contacted the Collectorate asserting rights over distinct batches listed in separate declarations and requested individual releases. Further examination revealed that both parties were purportedly shell companies registered under front persons, functioning as “market IDs” for unknown operators.
The address listed for one entity corresponded to a rice and flour store, whereas the second was recorded at a leased family home. Additionally, one of the firms appeared in the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) registry solely as a “Service Provider / General Order Supplier” instead of an importer, a status the report interpreted as a possible fiscal fraud under Section 32A(1)(b) of the Customs Act, 1969, which also constitutes a predicate offence under the Anti-Money Laundering Act, 2010.
Trading Activity and Financial Discrepancies
Access logs for the firms’ WeBOC user identifiers showed connections from 2,983 and 2,732 distinct IP addresses respectively, with an overlap of 1,048 IPs. According to the report, this usage pattern points to several hidden operators sharing the same NTN and WeBOC credentials to conduct imports, submit false declarations, breach regulations, and move illicit funds.
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The magnitude of the firms’ trade operations contrasted markedly with the capital they reported. At the start of the imports, the owners listed a total declared capital of Rs2.2 million; later filings showed a peak combined capital of roughly Rs77.7 million, which the report deemed insufficient to fund even a single month of the observed import volume.
During assessment, Customs increased the reported value of the imported merchandise by Rs1.3 billion. Specifically for the routers, the initial declaration of Rs97 million was revised upward to Rs565 million, a discrepancy the investigators highlighted as indicative of deliberate under-invoicing.
Recommendations and Next Steps
Together, the firms reported approximately Rs2.9 billion in domestic sales yet contributed negligible sales tax. A significant portion of these transactions involved buyers who were blacklisted, suspended, or otherwise inactive, or parties whose registered business activities did not match the purchased items. The report further claimed that the imports were funded by undisclosed monies linked to concealed beneficial owners.
The Collectorate suggested establishing a Joint Investigation Team (JIT) that would include anti-money-laundering personnel from Customs, Inland Revenue and possibly the Federal Investigation Agency to probe the alleged laundering and ownership structures. It also advised that both WeBOC user identifiers be suspended or revoked under Section 155F of the Customs Act, and that the matter be forwarded to RTO-II Karachi for income-tax and sales-tax action.
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