VCN – Among 13,000 violation cases have been handled from the beginning of the year. The Customs sector took 28 cases to court and proposed agencies to prosecute 155 other cases.
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| Rhino horns seized by port area 3 Customs Branch in Hai Phong |
VND277 billion paid to State budget
According the General Department of Customs, on the afternoon of December 1, 2021 due to increasing demand for drugs and disease prevention equipment, some traders have been found guilty of illegally importing, advertising and selling Covid-19 treatment drugs, test kits and other medical devices.
Accordingly, the General Department of Customs issued a warning notice to all businesses in the sector about violations in the import of Covid-19 related medical equipment.
The Anti-Smuggling and Investigations Department was required to issue Official Letter 1091/DTCBL-D1 (October 29, 2021), to guide some of the Customs Departments of Northern provinces to strengthen inspections and increase the control of frozen products which are processed for export, or temporarily imported for re-export, and stored in bonded warehouses. This is necessary to prevent the risk of illegal items entering into inland markets.
To review the fight against smuggling of goods and drugs in 2021, the General Department of Customs has issued a document on how to deal with the problem in the Central region, from Nghe An to Ninh Thuan and other related areas.
Regarding anti-smuggling performance in November, the whole Customs sector coordinated with one another to handle 1,131 cases of infringing goods, valued at VND481,734 billion. This contributed VND 97,702 billion to the State budget and aided towards the prosecution of three cases, with another 10 cases being transferred.
From the beginning of the year to November 24, the whole sector coordinated with other agencies to handle 13,092 cases. The total for cost of infringing goods were estimated at VND2,553 billion. Sanctions were administered to 12,652 cases, with a payment to the State budget of nearly VND277 billion. Meanwhile, customs authorities prosecuted 28 cases, and transferred 155 cases to other agencies.
Many large-scale transportations caught with prohibited goods
On October 31, 2021, the Lao Bao Border Gate Customs Branch and the Lao Bao Border Guard Station jointly seized one suspect for illegal transportation of weapons ammunition.
The infringing materials included: 1,464 cartridges of Sellier & Bellot Rimfire Ammunition as well as 73,000 rounds of standard velocity ammunition.
On November 18, 2021, at the CFS Vinabridge warehouse in Hai Phong, the Hai Phong Customs Department inspected a truck and found four rhino horns weighed about 19.5kg.
On November 13, 2021, the Express Delivery Customs Branch worked with the Drug Enforcement Team, Team 6 (Anti-Smuggling Investigation Department) and PC04 of the Ho Chi Minh City Police. They inspected a parcel exported to Australia that was suspected of containing narcotics. As a result, the competent forces identified 4,934 grams of white, yellow and purple crystals as amphetamine hidden in candle wax in a glass case.
 | Many risks in bringing live animals for preservation VCN – The transportation of live animals into storage may cause risks and lead to violations. |
On November 20, 2021, at Van Don International Airport, the Quang Ninh Customs Department worked with Quang Ninh Provincial Police to apprehend seven suspects related to cross-border trafficking of goods without documents and seized 6,486 cigars of various kinds.
By Thai Binh/ Huyen Trang