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Phones worth Tk5cr seized over alleged false import declaration
Daily Sun Report, Dhaka
Published: 20 Sep 2026, 02:01 PM
Photo: Collected
Customs officials seized 1,655 mobile phones worth an estimated Tk5 crore from a consignment declared as knit fabric at Dhaka airport’s airfreight area on 8 September.
According to findings by the Customs Intelligence and Investigation Directorate (CIID), the shipment was imported under the name of Thianis Apparels Limited, a Chattogram EPZ factory that shut down more than a year ago.
Investigators also suspect that import permission (IP) documents previously issued to two other Chattogram EPZ companies were forged and used for the shipment.
The 895kg consignment from Hong Kong arrived at Dhaka airport on 31 August aboard a Hong Kong Air Cargo flight. The smugglers allegedly concealed the phones inside specially made cylinders placed within fabric rolls.
A CIID notice said the shipment contained 450 Redmi 14C phones, 150 Redmi 15C phones and 1,055 older iPhones and Chinese-brand handsets. The phones were estimated to be worth around Tk5 crore.
Zhejiang Shaoxing Xinhua Knitting Company was listed as the shipper, while Janco Global Logistics was named as the master air waybill holder and FF Cargo Service as the freight forwarder.
Dhaka Customs House filed a case against Thianis Apparels and its C&F agent UK Dorin. FF Cargo Service, which handled the shipment, was not named as an accused.
Closed factory named as importer
Md Shariful Islam, executive director of Chattogram EPZ, told The Business Standard that Thianis Apparels shut down in May 2025 and its IP was deactivated around the same time.
The EPZ authorities later terminated the company’s lease and auctioned its assets, while another company was allotted the factory building, he said.
“There is no existence of Thianis Apparels,” Shariful said, adding that the company could not have legitimately imported new goods under the bonded facility.
Another CEPZ official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said authorities found that two old IPs issued to two companies, under which goods had already been received, were allegedly forged and used for the shipment under Thianis Apparels’ name.
“Possibly, the C&F agent, who might be a common customs agent for the three companies, was involved in the IP forgery. The customs authority will find out who actually imported the consignment and who else was involved,” he said.
Investigators suspect people with access to the companies’ old import records and documents may have facilitated the shipment. C&F agent UK Dorin, which previously handled air cargo clearance for Thianis, is also under scrutiny.
C&F agent’s role questioned
Shipment documents show that UK Dorin Managing Director Tanvir Ahmed authorised the clearance using a fake Thianis letterhead and later assigned Ruhul Amin to collect the goods. Customs records also identify Tanvir as Thianis’ commercial manager in the authorisation.
Tanvir, however, told The Business Standard that a Thianis official named Elias had authorised his employee to clear the shipment.
Thianis Managing Director Anisur Rahman Khan said Elias left the company in September 2024 and that Thianis had conducted no commercial activity since its closure.
He denied involvement in the shipment, saying no Thianis official had provided UK Dorin with clearance documents.
He said UK Dorin had previously handled Thianis’ airport cargo clearance but had not done so for about a year because the company’s IP had been blocked.
Anisur also said Thianis had several ongoing disputes with BEPZA and that he had lost access to business and personal documents left inside the factory after its assets were auctioned.
Meanwhile, officials of FF Cargo Service could not be reached for comment.
Criminal case filed over alleged false IP, smuggling
CIID officials said the amount of duty and tax allegedly evaded had yet to be determined.
They said investigators would assess the value of the phones based on their models, condition, IMEI numbers, declared import value and market prices.
CIID Director General Safiur Rahman declined to comment, referring media queries to the NBR spokesperson.
NBR spokesperson Al Amin said Dhaka Customs House had filed a criminal case with Airport Police Station over the alleged use of false IP documents and smuggling.
“The case was filed under Airport Police Station Case No 24 on 11 September 2026. Other legal proceedings under the applicable laws are ongoing,” he said.
Investigators are examining how the old IPs and Thianis’ documents were obtained, who arranged the shipment and how the phones were intended to enter the domestic market.