Port workers and officials from Kenya Revenue Authority watch as one of the four containers loaded with three V8 Range Rovers and a Mercedes Benz is loaded into a ship to be shipped back to Britain, November 01, 2019. [Gedion Maundu, Standard]
The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) has heightened the war on illegal trade and smuggling of goods at the Port of Mombasa.
The latest crackdown saw KRA together with the multi-agency taskforce, intercept stolen high-end vehicles from the UK valued at Sh55.2 million.
A Mombasa businessman has since been arrested after presenting himself to the shipping line to clear the goods on transit to Uganda.
Ali Abdalla Ali was last Friday arraigned before a Mombasa court and charged with the improper declaration of imports and concealment of expensive vehicles that were stolen.
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KRA Commissioner of Investigation and Enforcement David Yego said the goods were indicated as household items whereas upon scanning and verification, two Range Rovers and a Mercedes Benz were found inside the container.
He said Interpol confirmed that the three motor vehicles with tax implication of Sh14,080,341 were stolen from UK.
“Investigations are still ongoing to identify and arrest other culprits who are part of this organised racket,” said the commissioner.
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He said KRA, with other law enforcement agencies, will scale up the war to detect, disrupt and prosecute criminals who use Mombasa port to perpetrate illicit trade.
Ali, who denied the charge when he appeared before Mombasa Chief Magistrate Edna Nyaloti, was released on a Sh2 million bond or cash bail of Sh200,000.
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