Bentley stolen in London recovered from Karachi’s DHA
A luxury car, Bentley Mulsanne, was found in Karachi on Saturday by Pakistan customs on the information given by a UK law enforcement agency.
The vehicle, previously reported stolen in London, was found parked in the driveway of a residence in the upscale DHA locality of Karachi.
Customs was informed of the vehicle’s presence and an investigation was carried out at the local level to trace the stolen luxury sedan.
The investigation confirmed that the stolen car was parked at a Karachi residence. Customs searched and confiscated the Bentley.
The vehicle costs over $300,000 and is the brand’s largest and most expensive artisanal sedan.
The presence of the luxury car in Karachi is itself a mystery as many wondered how it reached Pakistan. Amazingly, Sindh Excise and Motor Vehicle Department also issued a local number plate for the vehicle, which calls into question the efficiency of the department.
The officials took the owner of the Jamil Shafi residence and the broker who sold the vehicle to him into custody after the owner of the home failed to provide proper documents.
The vehicle registration has also been falsified, said the customs officers. “The registration number of the stolen car is BRS-279.”
According to the FIR filed by customs officials, a tax of over Rs300 million was avoided as a result of the smuggling of the stolen vehicle.
On the information provided by the broker, Naveed Balwani, teams were formed to arrest Naveed Yameen, who would be at the helm of an international car racket.
In accordance with the suspects’ initial information, Balwani negotiated the affair between Shafi and Yameen.
Customs sources have indicated that in order to register these luxury vehicles, authorization to sell is required from the Ministry of External Affairs, Pakistan Customs NOC, and receiving payment of duties and taxes.
However, the Sindh Excise and Motor Vehicle Department registered the stolen vehicle and failed to comply with all legal requirements, raising eyebrows if the excise officials in Sindh were also part of the scam.
Sources added that an investigation against the officials implicated was also planned.