The Directorate Customs Intelligence and Investigation Karachi’s anti-smuggling squad stopped an effort to smuggle betel nuts on Monday after intercepting a truck going for Karachi via the Northern Bypass route.
According to reports, the betel was being transported under the pretext of animal excrement.
According to Inam Wazir, Deputy Director Customs Intelligence, they got a tip that the dried cattle dung, which was being supplied daily to several nurseries in the city through trucks, was also shipping contraband betel nut.
He went on to say that the crew surreptitiously watched the movement of all such trucks approaching Karachi, as a consequence of which an attempt was made to halt a suspicious truck in the city’s Nazimabad neighbourhood.
“However, instead of stopping, the driver tried to escape but the team chased him and managed to stop him,” added Wazir.
The said truck was taken into custody by the customs team after the driver failed to give a satisfactory answer and a detailed examination was conducted at the Customs Intelligence Headquarters.
During the examination, it was revealed that there were 280 bags of unhealthy betel nuts in the truck which are worth more than Rs10 million.
