He allegedly imports high-end sport utility vehicles (SUVs) in the name of third parties and evades staggering amounts of customs duty by gross undervaluation of the vehicles.
The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has moved the Bombay high court seeking cancellation of the bail granted to Alberto Bestonso, 37, by a sessions court, in a case of duty evasion of over Rs2 crore.
According to the DRI, Bestonso, an Italian passport holder, lives in Bandra by the virtue of holding a person of Indian origin card. He allegedly imports high-end sport utility vehicles (SUVs) in the name of third parties and evades staggering amounts of customs duty by gross undervaluation of the vehicles.
“Twenty-six cars were illegally imported and of them eight were imported by parties in Mumbai,” said Advait Sethna, advocate for DRI. He added that the import of these cars has become the prime economic offence over the past few years.
According to investigations initiated by the DRI in September 2008, Bestonso was involved in the import of a Lamborghini and a Corvette Z06. He had evaded customs duty of Rs1.63 crore and Rs37.60 lakh respectively on their import, the DRI petition says.
The DRI also said that Bestonso had evaded a number of summons issued to him by the directorate between September 2008 and May 2009.
The DRI had challenged the anticipatory bail granted to him by a sessions court last month. The court granted him bail on the grounds that the import of the Lamborghini was being investigated in Ahmedabad and he had already stayed in jail for nearly a month. The DRI, however, contended that granting him bail is like giving him a passport to flee from justice.
Considering the seriousness of the modus operandi, the nature of the offence, the huge ramification on the society and need for a “fair, unhampered and transparent investigation,” the DRI contended that Bestonso’s bail should be cancelled.
The court is likely to hear the application on Tuesday.
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