PRO in Dubai accused of offering Dh4,000 bribe to inspector

When the PRO was informed about the reason the goods could not be issued clearance, he allegedly offered the inspector Dh4,000.

A Chinese clearance PRO stood trial in the Court of First Instance on Thursday for allegedly offering Dh4,000 as bribe to a customs inspector.
According to prosecution records, the 27-year-old PRO wanted the inspector to do him an unlawful favour by permitting the exit of a container from the Jebel Ali Port without having acquired the necessary clearance from the customs.
The incident allegedly happened on February 14.
The inspector, holder of a Comoros Islands passport, told the investigating prosecutor that the defendant came to the port at around 6pm on February 12 to clear some goods sent from China for a shipment company.
The inspector said the goods, which included women's hair dryers and shaving devices, were not cleared as the officers detected some counterfeit trade brands among them. There was no indication to the local agent here.
When the PRO was informed about the reason the goods could not be issued clearance, he allegedly offered the inspector Dh4,000 to help him get them through the customs and out of the port.
The inspector then informed his superior that the PRO offered him money in order to get the goods out of the port and also to prevent him from sending samples to the Intellectual Property Rights Department at the Dubai Customs.
The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) officers arrested the accused in the parking lot of a shopping centre in Mirdiff after allegedly paying the bribe and collecting the customs statement on the goods.
The court will pronounce a verdict on September 14.
mary@khaleejtimes.com