Pakistani trader held for cheating Chinese company

KARACHI: The Cooperative Crime Circle of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has arrested and registered a case against a businessman for sending soil and gravel in 60 containers instead of a mineral to a Chinese company for Rs115 million. According to FIA officials, a case has been registered under sections 406, 420, 468, 471 and 109 against Syed Zeeshan Afzal Bilgrami, owner of M/s Danzo Traders, in the Corporate Crime Circle, Karachi.

The FIR has been registered following an inquiry, which was initiated on a complaint from Ms Corin Chen of a Chinese import company.

According to the case, Bilgrami and the Chinese import Jiangsu Provincial Foreign Trade Corporation signed an agreement on January 17, 2024 under which Danzo Traders Karachi was to export 1,500 metric tonnes of chrome ore to the company in China. In February, Danzo Traders shipped a shipment of 60 twenty-foot bulk containers from Karachi Port to Xingang China Port. In these containers, instead of the precious metal chrome ore, soil, gravel and stones were filled.

According to the case, before the shipment reached China, the accused fraudulently executed the said LC held in his company’s bank account. He submitted fake and bogus documents of an inspection certificate of quality and weight deposit in the bank. According to the case, the accused not only committed export fraud but also committed banking fraud by submitting fake, forged and bogus documents for the execution of LC in his favour. He not only cheated the Chinese importer but also defamed the country. According to officials, the accused was arrested from his office on II Chundrigar Road, Karachi.

Chrome ore is a naturally occurring mineral that contains chromium, iron, and oxygen, and is used to make ferrochrome, an important component in stainless steel.