IPOH: Goods with unpaid duties worth RM2.4mil have been seized during several enforcement operations since the beginning of this year, says Perak Customs Department director Mohd Nadzri Ariffin.
He said coordinated operations by its units from Teluk Intan, Ipoh and Pengkalan Hulu thwarted attempts to smuggle rice, frozen meat, tiles and electric bicycles.
The five separate cases were detected between January and February, with multiple seizures made in Port Klang and Gerik.
In the first case on Jan 14, Mohd Nadzri said enforcement officers discovered 801 boxes of porcelain tiles falsely declared as cement tiles after inspecting a container in Port Klang.
The goods were estimated to be worth RM406,500, with unpaid duties amounting to RM557, 790, he added.
“In a separate case on Jan 21, a lorry was intercepted along Jalan Lenggong-Gerik where officers found rice believed to have been smuggled from a neighbouring country via Kelantan.
“The driver and his attendant were arrested and initial investigations revealed that the rice, intended for distribution in Perak, was transported without a valid permit,” he told reporters at a press conference yesterday.
He added that on Jan 27, 22.9 tonnes of lentils, falsely labelled as rice, were seized in Port Klang and had been transported without a valid permit.
He said that a total of 418 electric bicycles were also seized at Westport, Port Klang, during a separate operation on Feb 6.
“The bicycles, worth RM358,244.27, were found to have been falsely declared as Malaysian-made products despite being imported from China,” he added.
He said the cases are being investigated under the Customs Act for false declaration and smuggling.
Mohd Nadzri said enforcement officers also uncovered an attempt to pass off 49,343kg of frozen meat as frozen dumplings in Port Klang during an operation on Feb 12.
The frozen meat, which was falsely declared, was valued at RM614,832.26, with unpaid duties estimated at RM30,741.61, he said.
