FIA arrests two customs officials in KP over graft charge

PESHAWAR: The Federal Investigation Agency’s Anti-Corruption Circle arrested two customs employees for their alleged involvement in corruption, officials said on Saturday.

They said that the customs employees, including a superintendent and a sepoy, were involved in granting clearance to cell phones and electronic gadgets brought from abroad at the Bacha Khan International Airport, Peshawar.

“These employees allowed clearance of cell phones and electronic gadgets from the airport without the customs duty being paid. The exchequer incurred a loss of Rs8.8 million due to smuggling of smartphones allowed by these two customs employees,” an FIA official said.

The official said that the accused persons, Mohammad Ali, a superintendent, and sepoy Sunil Kumar were arrested after a special court turned down their pre-arrest bail application. He added that both the accused persons were being interrogated.

Meanwhile, a statement issued by FIA said that the agency’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa zone had been divided into two zones – Peshawar and Kohat.

It said that Peshawar, Mardan, Malakand and Hazara divisions would fall in the jurisdiction of Peshawar zone with its zonal headquarters in the provincial capital, while those of Kohat, Bannu and Dera Ismail Khan divisions would be part of Kohat zone with zonal headquarters in Kohat.

“The reason for setting up the zonal headquarters and dividing the KP zone into two is to improve the agency’s performance,” the statement said.