Customs officials make mass diamond seizure

BANGKOK: -- Thai customs officials have recently seized over Bt40 million worth of smuggled goods, including cut diamonds imported illegally from Africa, the department's Director-General, Sathit Limpongpan, revealed today.

Mr. Sathit said that officials had seized cut diamonds with a combined weight of 3,961.98 carats, worth Bt32 million, smuggled in by a Taiwanese national from South Africa.

Customs officials had also made several seizures of fabric smuggled in from China, and jeans smuggled in from Indonesia.

The preferred smuggling method appears to be a customs privilege that the goods are being imported for export purposes, other than domestic sales, in order to avoid taxes.

--TNA 2005-05-09

I doubt it George, and I can bet you those stones are zirconia"s and not the real McCoys.

Nobody in or from Africa let alone some Taiwanese jerk would would risk moving such Real Diamonds thru Thailand.

Recently Africa screwed the Commerce deal for rice. Loaded up the ship with something else, while the Thai victims kept screaming to stop the ship as it sailed out yonder.

Resulting loss for Thailand on this deal------- over 5 Million Baht. Africa set up the juice in Britain, picking the Bank, planting one of their own in that Bank and making Thailand put up their deposit as good faith money known as their own trust account. Anyway, Africa cleared the Thai money transfer and took it and Africa never had any money in their trust account, and that employee disappeared and vanished.

Happenned just recently 1 week ago.

Thailand just got hustled by real pros since many here try to hustle foreigners.

This information is legit. Got it directly from the real legit source itself who knew all about it completely.

Daveyo

Oh by the way, yes I know Sathit very well.

If such shipment was in transport to another destination, yes customs here inspect these goods, and they steal it too.

Even tho it is not destined for Thailand. Customs claims it being smuggled is full of BS. They use this ruse to capture the goods themselves, thus preventing it from really getting it to its intended destination.

Daveyo

That Africa doesn't seem to be a very honest fellow.

jb

If such shipment was in transport to another destination, yes customs here inspect these goods, and they steal it too.

Even tho it is not destined for Thailand.  Customs claims it being smuggled is full of BS.  They use this ruse to capture the goods themselves, thus preventing it from really getting it to its intended destination.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Honest custom huh

A diamond is forever... and nothing says 'I love you' more than something smuggled into the country in someone's intestines.

There have been many stories in the International media about some African nations using un-documented diamonds to support various wars and regimes... And Thailand has been name before as being a chief smuggling point to get these diamonds to market

I don't remember the details, but every diamond is supposed to be certified, as I recall. I'd guess that to be the rest of the story that wasn't in the paper....

smuggling jeans INTO thailand ?? interesting....