KRA smashes car smuggling syndicate linked to clearing agents
The accused Andrew Moses Ouma was arraigned before Mombasa Senior Resident Magistrate Ritah Amwayi and charged with fraudulent evasion of customs duty of Sh13.8 million. He was released on a bond of Sh3 million or a surety of a similar amount. The pre-trial date was set on July 13, 2021.
The Kenya Revenue Authority has smashed a syndicate involving the smuggling of high-end vehicles and registering them to be used without paying taxes.
Investigations by the taxman have revealed that unscrupulous businessmen working as clearing and forwarding agents lodge several entries with incorrect details in order to register the vehicles.
KRA discovered this syndicate following the arrest of clearing and forwarding agent Andrew Moses Otieno.
Mr Otieno lodged seven entries with incorrect details in order to register smuggled high-end motor vehicles worth Sh72.3 million, the agency says.
KRA says the false entries denied the government Sh13.6 million in taxes.
Between October 2018 and January 2019, court documents show, Mr Otieno participated in the lodging of false entries with the intention to defrauding KRA of taxes.
The court was told wrong entries were made to facilitate the clearance and registration of several vehicles - a Land Rover RSX, Ford S. Wagon, Land Rover Sports RSX, Toyota Straus, Audi Ram, Toyota Harrier, and Toyota Stratus Hard Top.
Mr Otieno denied the offense when he appeared before Mombasa Senior Resident Magistrate Rita Amwayi.
Mr Otieno is one of many suspects that KRA has arrested for the offense of evading customs duty by making false entries to have luxury vehicles cleared without paying the required duty.
Similarly, KRA has also brought criminal proceeding against Mombasa accountant Moiz Maimoon Mustafa over the same offense. He is accused of denying the government Sh26.7 million in taxes.
The agency says Mr Mustafa incorrectly declared an imported high-end car under a tax-exemption regime to evade paying custom duty.
He is also facing three other counts of causing a false declaration to be made to evade paying taxes and forging a passport.
