The National Board of Revenue’s (NBR) Central Intelligence Cell (CIC) has uncovered revenue evasion worth Tk 102.57 crore by two companies allegedly misusing bonded warehouse facilities.

The companies are Riaz Knitwear Ltd and Lisha Tex (Pvt) Ltd, which allegedly imported duty-free raw materials under bond facilities and sold them in the open market, alongside irregularities in import and export activities.

According to an NBR press release on Monday (November 2), the total revenue evasion amounted to Tk 102.57 crore. Of this, Riaz Knitwear accounted for Tk 94.73 crore, while Lisha Tex was responsible for Tk 7.83 crore.

The CIC investigation found that Riaz Knitwear imported 2,862 tonnes of woven polyester fabric against 41 Utilisation Declarations (UDs). However, around 2,237 tonnes, or nearly 78 per cent, could not be found in the factory’s warehouse. The CIC suspects the fabric was illegally removed from the bonded warehouse and sold in the open market.

The estimated customs value of the missing fabric was Tk 134.29 crore, resulting in alleged duty and tax evasion of more than Tk 94.73 crore.

Meanwhile, nearly 174,000 kg of polyester fabric imported by Lisha Tex under bond facilities was also missing from its warehouse. The company allegedly evaded around Tk 6.10 crore in duties and taxes by selling the fabric in the open market.

The investigation also found discrepancies in the company’s export declarations, including undervaluation of export prices, procurement of raw materials outside approved UDs and violations of the mandatory 20 per cent value-addition requirement.

Additionally, the company allegedly purchased garment accessories worth more than four lakh pieces from the local market without proper approval or payment of value-added tax (VAT). It also evaded VAT by supplying kit bags worth Tk 3.23 crore to an unlicensed company.