Quang Tri: Smuggled goods hidden in passenger cars

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Infringing goods in the store managed by Quang Tri Customs Enforcement Team. Photo: Q.H

These are the tricks conducted by smugglers in Quang Tri province in the first months of 2019.

According to Quang Tri Customs, from 1 December 2018 to the end of 28 March 2019, the Department detected, seized and handled 140 Customs offences.

Among these, 54 violations of illegal cross-border transportation of goods, trafficking of goods without legal documents in the Customs control area with seized goods worth VND 1.2 billion; 5 violations of commercial fraud, false declaration of export goods with a quantity valued at nearly VND 1 billion; and 81 violations of customs procedures.

Typically, on 9 January 2019, Quang Tri Customs Control Enforcement Team made a report on administrative violation for Mr. Le Van Quy (residing in Quarter 2, Ward 3, Quang Tri Town) about the transportation of imported goods without legal documents in the Customs control area, including 2.5 tons of refined sugar made in Thailand; 1.2 tons of glutinous rice made in Laos.

Then, on 11 February 2019, Mr. Nguyen Van Tan, the representative of Huynh Trong Phat Co., Ltd., (residing in Dong Chin Hamlet, Lao Bao Town, Huong Hoa District, Quang Tri province) carried out Customs procedures at La Lay Border Gate Customs Branch for the export declaration No. 302307505161/B11 registered on 9 January 2019.

Through physical inspection, the Customs force detected an insufficiency of goods compared to the actual declaration of nearly VND 600 million, and also issued a decision on sanctioning administrative violations and a fine of VND 25 million.

According to leaders of Quang Tri Customs Department, the smugglers are mainly people in Quang Tri province and Thua Thien Hue, Quang Binh and Nghe An provinces.

Smugglers focus on trafficking high-value and consumer demand goods such as beer, wine, foreign cigarettes, Ensure milk, consumer goods and electronic products made in Thailand, firecrackers, drugs...

The main methods and tricks are dividing goods into small volumes to hide in passenger cars, trucks and other vehicles; hiring people to carry goods with high value through the forest far away from Customs checkpoints.

The Customs offences are mainly offences of overdue date for temporary import for re-export, temporary export for re-import of entry and exit vehicles, trafficking and transporting goods without legal documents and unidentified goods owners.

Recently, Quang Tri Customs Department has focused on drastically implementing the guiding documents of the National and local 389 Steering Committees, the Ministry of Finance, the General Department of Vietnam Customs and the People's Committee of Quang Tri province in the fight against smuggling, trade fraud, counterfeit goods and illegal transportation of goods across border gates in the Lunar New Year.

The Department has closely coordinated with competent agencies in the province and local governments and focused on propagating and urging the people in the province in combating, detecting and denouncing acts of smuggling and illegal transportation of goods across border gates.