Things are tense at the Customs Department tonight after another missing container scandal. Except that in this case, there's no missing container – in fact, that 20-foot container is right in the customs yard, just that it's empty – and its contents never reached their destination in the Free Zone. And where they are and what they are is a mystery that's causing many a sleepless night tonight.
That is the outline of a story with many intricacies that has raised many eyebrows. 7news has been investigating all day – and we had multiple, open and frank conversations with senior officials at the customs department who confirmed and further clarified all the unofficial reports we had heard.
The story began on Thursday when a container arrived from India intended for a company in the Free Zone called Pier One. As is standard procedure, any such container has to first get clearance from the management of the Corozal Free Zone – which has to authenticate that the company, in this case Pier One, is a registered and active company and one that it is authorized to import the kind of goods in the shipment. That was provided – as is validated by this stamp – which contains the imprint of Free Zone CEO Raul Rosado. Customs claims the sheaf of standard documentation also contained a Corozal Free Zone entry form – which is also required for goods slated for the zone.
And while that should have been enough, the container – being from India and bound for the zone – was flagged for a check in the bonded area. That's here in this open area where a junior customs officer conducted what's called a 75% check – which requires removal of most of the contents, a random examination of those boxes and a look inside the container as well. It happens in the open, in view – if not necessarily oversight – of workers who load and unload the container. The container was loaded with 182 cartons of dry goods, mainly purses and sports uniforms. The goods were valued at fifty thousand dollars and the duty would have been about eighteen thousand dollars.
Customs senior staff confirmed that usually two persons conduct such a check, but the other officer was busy checking another container – and he instructed the junior officer to go ahead. Nothing suspicious was found and the container was cleared for onward movement to its intended destination in the Free Zone, the Pier One company. Except that company is a shell – it has not been active for two years and has no storefront that it operates. This fact was known to the zone management, and should have been known to Customs, which sources say has a list of active Free Zone companies.
But no one caught up on that and it was approved to move out along with another shipment and one customs guard. That's two containers and one customs guard – which is another departure from standard procedure - but customs senior management confirmed that it does happen from time to time because they are short of customs guards. The guard went in the truck which was not the one intended for Pier One Company. When he got to the zone at 4:30 yesterday afternoon, the guard told the customs officer that the Pier One Truck was coming half an hour later. Up to 6:00 pm it had not come, and it never did. Today customs and free zone management confirmed that they have checked security cameras, security logs, and all personnel, and the truck wasn't recorded anywhere.
But the news that it never arrived did not become known until this morning – because the customs officer who was to have received it in Corozal, never told the next person on shift that it never arrived – which is another deviation from procedure. Except that the driver, one Conorquie insists that he did go into the zone, delivered the goods, and drove back this morning. And that part is correct, he did drive back this morning and delivered the empty container – because while customs was scrambling to find this container that never reached the free zone – it was there parked right in their back yard – but completely empty.
So where are the goods? And what were the goods? No one can answer the first question and the second is left to speculation. Senior customs personnel today said that, quote, "We are satisfied that it is not pseudo-ephedrine" They added that they believe it is regular contraband or could be a case of insurance fraud. And they believe that because the goods do not follow any of the known patterns for pseudo-ephedrine smuggling, which is most often sent to fictitious companies and fictitious names – and is smuggled or stolen out of the customs compound. This one was duly cleared with a customs entry. This company was duly registered – if inactive – and more importantly, the container was checked.
The customs officer who did the check was under heavy scrutiny today and the customs guard who accompanied the missing shipment has been suspended. The driver who says he was hired by Mexican is also being questioned.
But if it was just contraband or insurance fraud – why go to all the hassle? And there is also evidence of a fair amount of criminal collusion and orchestration. That is evidenced by the alarming allegation from the Chief Executive of the Free Zone Raul Rosado that he quote "does not know where that stamp came from." That's right, Rosado says the stamp which, again, is imprinted with his signature is a fake. We'd say it's a pretty good one – particularly when compared to the genuine stamp – which is – to the untrained eye, identical.
Rosado says customs also deviated from procedure by clearing the container without the required Corozal Free Zone Entry Form. We spoke to the officer who did the inspection and he confirmed that the form was there.
And caught up somewhere in all this, is the brokerage firm which processed the paperwork to clear the container. That firm comprises former Customs officers – at least one who was dismissed in connection with a pseudo-ephedrine investigation.
It is a mess replete with suspicious scraps, but no main course because, at bottom, there is unknown, possibly illicit cargo missing and unaccounted for – and both customs and the free zone are implicitly blaming each other. The Free Zone management says it has called a meeting with the Mexican owners of the company for tomorrow to see if they know about the shipment. The Free Zone Management says that when they took over in 2008 – they found about 180 shell companies on the books.
