Customs staff face action for stealing

AHMEDABAD, Feb 18: Tapping a source of supply of foreign goods to customs officials, a team of Mundra police recovered foreign liquor and...

AHMEDABAD, Feb 18: Tapping a source of supply of foreign goods to customs officials, a team of Mundra police recovered foreign liquor and cigarette packets worth Rs 11,500 from a tug at the Adani Port and registered a case against five customs employees, including a superintendent, on Thursday.

All the five were absconding, police said.

On suspicion that officers have been bringing goods from ships, police had kept vigil at the port and spotted the ship, MV Lorley, of Panama anchored four km away for the past four days. The ship had come to fill soya powder.

On Tuesday, police said, the five employees went to the ship in a tug, MT Assi, for inspection around 11 am and returned around 5 pm before the ship left for Panama.

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On reaching the coast, when the officers saw police keeping a watch, they walked away. Police searched the tug and recovered four bottles Johnny Walker whiskey, four cartons of beer and three cartons of Marlboro cigarettes.

Tug master Gangaram Sarang told police that the customs officers had brought the goods from the ship. Consequently, police interrogated ship master Sakellarms Charalampos who said the customs staff had taken the liquor and cigarette packets from him.

Charalampos submitted in writing that the customs officials boarded the ship at 12.30 pm and surveyed it till 3.20 pm. After they found that the ship had completed all the formalities, they left with the goods.

Mundra police station in-charge PSI Gadhvi said a case was registered under Prohibition Act and Indian Penal Code against customs superintendent (Bhuj) Shah, posted at the jetty area, inspector Raval and three constables.