VCN – The enterprise whose name is on the customs declaration that illegally imports a shipment of antiques said he was not the owner of the goods; he only imported them for other people.
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| The shipment of smuggled antiques |
According to Saigon port area 4 Customs Branch – HCM City Customs Department, after the container containing antiques and banned goods of BMMN Co., Ltd. imported from France to Vietnam was discovered by Customs authorities and held in custody, the owner of this shipment has been actively cooperated with Customs authority to carry out inspection and handling.
Working with Customs authority, the director of this enterprise said that BMMN Co., Ltd. was not the owner of this shipment. Instead, this shipment was imported by another person who asked BMMN Co., Ltd. to carry out import procedures.
The business representative also said that because the owner of the goods made a late payment, BMMN Co., Ltd. has just opened a customs declaration to complete import procedures for the above shipment after it arrived at the port more than three months.
According to our research, BMMN Co., Ltd. has just been established, and the above shipment is the first shipment imported by this company to HCM City.
As informed by Customs News, BMMN Co., Ltd (HCMC) was named in the customs declaration for importing the above shipment. However, through receiving information from the management area, the online duty division of the General Department of Vietnam Customs and the Saigon port area 4 Customs Branch detected suspicious signs. Hence, the company was put under special supervision.
According to the enterprise’s declaration, the imported goods are brand-new wooden furniture and 100% imported from France. However, after conducting a physical inspection of the shipment, the Saigon port area 4 Customs Branch discovered that all the goods contained in the container were decorations, including ceramics and furniture.
The inspection results show that, among 163 items, 34 are antiques over 100 years old, dating from the 18th to 20th centuries. These artifacts originate from China, Japan and Vietnam. The remaining goods are made from rosewood in Group 1 of the List of goods banned from import.
By Lê Thu/Thanh Thuy