Customs officials ordered to stand down from seizing SUV with false plates

May 10, 2017 News

The David Granger administration entered office in May 2015, vowing to weed out corruption and abuse of office.
Billions of dollars were being lost because of tax evasion and other weaknesses in the system.
However, despite a number of regulations being introduced, there are still instances of the system being abused.
Yesterday, one such instance reportedly occurred on Main Street.
Customs officials were in the area when they spotted a pearl white Toyota Land Cruiser.
What raised the eyebrows of the officials was that while the sports utility vehicle (SUV) was a high-end, late model one of the year 2014, the number plates were of the PJJ series, issued about a decade ago.
The officials pulled over the vehicle. The driver reportedly disclosed that the vehicle belonged to a prominent contractor. The driver said he is a relative.
The officials were in the process of taking the driver and vehicle in when they received a call to stand down.
The officials were reportedly told that the vehicle was one for which a duty free concession application was in process.
The vehicle had been delivered to the contractor under a Customs processing, delivery system known as Permission For Immediate Delivery (PID).
However, what would be strange is that PIDs are generally only allowed for perishables like imported vegetables and medications or equipment for which there are emergency works.
It is unclear who gave the permission for the vehicle to be released from the wharf to the contractor and further, on whose instructions it was released when Customs officials stopped it yesterday.