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Customs officials have seized 1,655 high-end mobile phones allegedly concealed inside rolls of garment fabric at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka.
The phones were recovered during a joint operation by Customs, Customs Intelligence, Aviation Security (AVSEC) and other intelligence agencies at the airport’s import cargo area on Tuesday, based on prior intelligence.
The consignment, imported through FF Cargo, arrived in Bangladesh from Hong Kong on August 31 aboard Hong Kong Air Cargo flight RH-6651. The airway bill number was 828-56782412. The shipment was declared as garment fabric.
During inspection on Tuesday, customs officials became suspicious of the fabric rolls. A subsequent search uncovered a large number of mobile phones specially concealed inside the rolls. After counting, officials confirmed that 1,655 phones had been recovered.
Mohammad Kamrul Hasan, additional commissioner of Dhaka Customs House, confirmed the seizure, saying the shipment had been declared as garment fabric but the phones were found hidden inside the rolls.
Customs officials are investigating whether the shipment was deliberately misdeclared to evade customs duties and taxes. They are also examining who was behind the consignment, its intended recipients and whether similar shipments had previously been cleared using the same method.
The brands, models and market value of the seized phones will be verified to determine the total value of the consignment and the potential amount of duty and tax evaded.
Legal action will be taken based on the findings of the investigation.