Hotelier held for role in smuggling 1300 mobile phones

MUMBAI, DEC 3: The Air Intelligence Unit of Customs, on Tuesday arrested Sarban Singh Keer, a hotelier, for his alleged involvement in the...

MUMBAI, DEC 3: The Air Intelligence Unit of Customs, on Tuesday arrested Sarban Singh Keer, a hotelier, for his alleged involvement in the smuggling of 1326 mobile phones detected last Thursday at the Chhatrapati Shivaji international airport. The alleged carrier of the contraband, Sanjay Balkrishna Chawan, was arrested on the same day, November 25, when the screening of his baggage had revealed the hidden phones. He had declared that his baggage contained 25 dinner sets.

Interestingly, Customs have claimed that Sarban Singh, who received Chawan at the airport’s arrival hall of module I on that day, fled when Chawan’s baggage was subjected to screening. One joint commissioner of customs has been transferred from the airport because he had allegedly instructed his juniors to allow Singh the facility to enter the arrival hall to receive Chawan.

Chawan has told AIU officers that he was carrying the mobiles for one `Uncle Singh.’ He also identified Singh from a photograph on his passport.

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According to the remand application filed by the AIU on December 1, when they produced Singh in the metropolitan magistrate’s court, Singh had come to the arrival hall to receive Chawan. He reportedly “took to heels” (sic) once the baggage was screened. AIU officers visited his house in Khar and his office in Juhu on November 26 and failing to locate him, served a summons on him (received by his son) asking him to report to AIU on November 29.

According to the remand application Singh showed up at AIU on November 30 apparently admitted to having come to the arrival baggage hall. However, he denied that he had come to receive Chawan.

However, the Customs PRO, L J Aguiar, had also identified Singh as the same person who had come to the baggage hall on November 25 and received Chawan.

Singh has been remanded in judicial custody till December 14.

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