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The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), Mumbai district unit, recently arrested a Mumbai resident for allegedly smuggling high-end wristwatches, and confiscated 34 top-brand watches worth Rs 30 crore from his home.
The General Investigation officers received information that the man, whose identity was not revealed, was in possession of more than 30 smuggled luxury watches of foreign origin at his residence. The officers further discovered that the man had gone abroad and was returning to India with more high-quality luxury watches of foreign origin and attempting to smuggle them into the country by evading service.
The man was intercepted at Kolkata airport recently while returning from Singapore and his expensive Greubel Forsey watch was recovered from him, which he had not declared to customs. The GID said the person was subsequently arrested under Article 104 of the 1962 Customs Law.
Later, DIS officers searched the man’s home in an upscale apartment complex. During the search, 34 high-end watches from various premium brands such as Greubel Forsey, Purnell, Louis Vuitton, MB&F, Mad, Rolex, Audemars Piguet, Richard Mille, etc. were recovered.
Most of these watches are limited edition and exceptionally high value. The central agency stated that the total market value of all the watches is estimated to be more than Rs 30 crore.
The agency did not reveal the identity of the accused and the place they raided, where they are looking for other members of the smuggling racket.
An agency official said that the import of watches by individuals via baggage attracts 38.5 percent customs duties according to the baggage rules, which the accused evaded.
She added that the case exposed a serious fraud that was committed during several foreign trips/visits and enhanced DRI’s ability to detect and combat unique and complex smuggling methods.
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