Officers who misled Customs and saved actor in plastic flowers deal

Officers who misled Customs and saved actor in plastic flowers deal

An incident was reported recently of an actor who was involved in a fraud evading customs taxes levied on a stock of plastic flowers brought to this country from China. According to information received ... tele and cinema actor named Ajith Weerasingha.  

This actor has told customs that plastic flowers  (brought under the cover of wall carpets) were to be used for tele-dramas and films to be utilised for his Ajith Films institute. However, customs officers
who were suspicious of importing Wall carpets like this continuously created suspicion in them and when they questioned the actor in this connection and opened a container what was found inside were not wall carpets but plastic flowers. Subsequently when the actor was question in this respect what he said was that since he was involved in producing films and tele-dramas, the flowers were necessary. 

In the month of October, 2018 when the container was to be taken out for clearance, it was halted by surveillance division of customs. Thus the container was not released by and it was taken into custody. In any case, preventing the container being taken out, this division then started inquiries and what came to be known initially was that plastic flowers were brought under the title wall carpets for the purpose of escaping cess tax and other taxes. The customs levy a cess tax of Rs. one thousand for a kilo of plastic flowers brought to Sri Lanka. However, Ajith Films institute has imported plastic flowers naming it as all carpets by paying a lesser tax and thus have it released from the grip of customs. 

At inquiries customs have questioned the tele-actor why plastic flowers were brought by attaching a number for irrelevant stock of goods. At that point what he had said was that even on previous occasions when goods were brought it was this same procedure that was adopted. When an argument flared up at that moment, the actor has requested for a further investigation in this context. 

After customs looked into this matter, it was subsequently handed over to the classification unit. On that occasion the conclusion of the classification unit was that the number allotted was incorrect thus providing an opportunity for the tele-actor to bring in plastic flowers under the pretext of wall carpets. Thus, Sri Lankan Customs found that it is clearly understood that these plastic flowers could be detached separately one by one not to utilise them in cinematic production as such but for business purposes. Further in the process of investigations what customs officers came to know was that containers brought across the actor's business firm previously had escaped duty free taxes and thus engaged in a fraud. Customs officers were clever enough to confirm this robbery and fraud in this relevance. All in all, this popular tele-actor quite apart from Ajith Films company had also has engaged in a flower-selling business under the name Lanka Leaders (Pvt) Company. 

In the above connection a certain retired officer of customs and a team of officers inside have given the actor a lending hand. These officers have informed higher officials of customs that their client is free from guilt. Special attention was focused upon by customs officers pertaining to mistakes committed by the actor concerning the plastic flowers container brought by him. In that connection some previous offences for which he is responsible was revealed. Thus, the customs ordered a levy of Rs. sixty lakhs twenty three thousand hundred and ninety in respect of the offence of having evaded the relevant taxes for containers brought previously. 

The actor has pleaded from customs saying that he is a popular person in Sri Lanka and therefore to mete out justice and to impose a justified sum of money as charges. At that point an officer of customs then imposed a fine of Rs. 25 lakhs instead of the sum of Rs. sixty lakhs twenty three thousand hundred and ninety. At that moment this actor, owner of Lanka Leaders (Pvt) Company had notified customs in writing saying that he does not require those plastic flowers and what he had pointed out as reasons was since the film for which those flowers were brought has already been shot and finished; therefore these flowers were of no use anymore. Under such circumstances Sri Lankan customs brought inquiries to a halt temporarily and looked for an alternative. 

Thus as this stock of flowers was not being released, what chief investigation officer of this incident decided to dispose of the flowers. Therefore as the actor who got down the flowers does not remove the container and refuses to have the container released, preparations were arranged to sell the flowers under a tender process. Thus an estimate was arrived at with former customs officers getting together in connection with the flowers concerned. They had in fact arrived at this assessment in a rather queer manner. When Rs. 25 was imposed on the actor to have the container released, customs central disposal unit officers had assessed it for Rs. one lakh fifty six thousand. Inclusive of other taxes theses officers have decided to sell the container of plastic flowers  for a figure of Rs. one lakh and ninety five thousand. Humorously the said stock of flowers were sold to the actor himself. The container was released by Ajith Weerasingha alias W.A.A. Weerasingha ... under the name of the actor and that was last July 5th. Through an underhand deal involving the officers ... it was so disposed. It was so carried out saying that the container containing plastic flowers saying that it was sold to a warehouse in Japan. It is of special interest to note that it is this very same actor who happens to buy this stock of flowers as the owner of the said warehouse in Japan. Information keeps unravelling that this fraudulent deal has been carried out by hoodwinking customs officers. 

Information -- Prageeth Sampath Karunathilaka