In a ground-breaking intelligence-based operation (IBO), a team from the Directorate of Intelligence & Investigation-Customs, Karachi, discovered that non-duty-paid fuel was being stolen from the Parco oil pipeline through a specially built deep underground conduit. The announcement was made on Wednesday.
The smugglers had been stealing and illegally extracting non-duty-paid diesel through a 174-foot tunnel that was ingeniously linked to PARCO’s oil pipeline. For a considerable amount of time, the illicit activity went unpunished, resulting in an estimated daily loss of billions of rupees.
The tunnel was found through a well-executed IBO by Customs Intelligence, where it was being cleverly used for smuggling against fiscal and legal duties.
The operation was carried out in response to a tip provided by Director General of Customs Intelligence Faiz Ahmad Chadhar regarding the involvement of a well-organized smuggling syndicate in the theft and sale of fuel that has not been subject to duty.
“This case is a testament to the vigilance and effectiveness of Customs Intelligence and highlights the country’s evolving and complex nature of fuel smuggling,” the statement continued.
It further claimed that the strategy discovered by Customs Intelligence had led to the discovery of this enormous scam involving the vast theft of billions of rupees’ worth of non-duty-paid diesel.
The crew seized 65,000 liters of non-duty/stolen diesel at the search site, valued at Rs20 million, according to the IBO’s information.
The aforementioned figure highlights the scope of the smuggling enterprise and the significant daily financial loss to the government coffers.
The smugglers’ cunning strategy of turning to more inventive and clandestine tactics as a result of “heightened scrutiny and crackdowns by the Customs Intelligence and other LEAs on traditional smuggling routes and methods” was exposed in this instance.
A significant discovery resulted from a questionable industrial site in Karachi receiving special attention. Under the watchful eye of Customs Intelligence, an edible oil factory in Port Qasim was discovered to be deeply embroiled in illicit operations.
