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A Freeport businessman was slapped with $50,000 in fines after 30 rounds of assorted ammunition were found in his shipping container, containing clothes, toys and other items, brought in from America.
Glen Seelochan, 53, who runs a charitable organisation for children pleaded guilty to two charges—making and subscribing to a false declaration and importation of prohibited items—in the Couva Magistrates Court yesterday.
Senior state attorney for the Customs and Excise Division Harricharan Kassie said on August 2, Customs Officer Kirk Peters went to the Customs & Excise Container Examination Station in Point Lisas where he met Customs officer’s Gillian Stewart and Seelochan.
Stewart handed Peters several documents, including the declaration form. She reported to Peters that while examining the container in the presence of Seelochan a black bag with the assorted ammunition, a magazine, a styrofoam ammunition nest and a piece of paper with a telephone number, were found among household items.
Seelochan did not declare those items and did not have a licence to import the ammunition. Seelochan’s attorney Shiva Boodoo told to Senior Magistrate Wendy Dougdeen-Bally that Seelochan recently returned to the country from the United States where has citizenship.
Boodoo said Seelochan runs Stand Up for Abused Children, a non-profit organisation, and the container also contained toys, clothes and other supplies for children to be distributed to abused and needy children.
He said Boodoo was not aware that the illegal items were in the container but he accepted responsibility for them.
Boodoo said his client had no previous convictions or pending matters. Kassie reminded the court that the importation charge carried a minimum $50,000 fine or trice the value of the goods or imprisonment up to eight years while the maximum penalty for the declaration charge was $125,000.
The documents, ammunition and other items were produced in court.