Kochi, India - Five individuals from West Bengal and Assam have been arrested for smuggling high-end used cars from Bhutan, officials announced on Saturday.
The arrested individuals include Biswadip Das, Dipak Patowary, Ayub Ali, MD Mostafa Ahmed, and Jalal Mandal, with Patowary being the District Transport Officer of Bongaigaon in Assam.
A widespread investigation, conducted in Assam and West Bengal with the assistance of police and Customs formations, found that the group had registered 460 vehicles using forged documents.
The vehicles, including foreign-made cars and Indian-made vehicles re-exported without paying Customs duties, were then illegally registered using forged documents.
The Customs Commissionerate, Kochi, launched 'Operation Numkhor' last year after discovering that used vehicles, mostly high-end SUVs from Bhutan, were being smuggled into India, re-registered in various states, and sold to buyers who claimed they were legally imported.
Das, an employee of a major IT firm, was identified as the mastermind behind the smuggling operation and was apprehended near the India-Bhutan border before being remanded in judicial custody.
Customs will soon seek the custody of the arrested individuals for further investigation, officials said.
