It has been reported that Samir Sheth, head of executive sales at Nomura Financial Advisory and Securities (India) has been jailed for allegedly smuggling high-end luxury watches. There is no official confirmation from the company about the arrest, said the report on Moneycontrol.
Last week, the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) arrested Samir Sheth, a resident of Mumbai at the Kolkata airport for carrying a Greubel Forsey watch without revealing it to the customs officials. Such types of watches draw a customs duty of more than 36 percent. Samir had landed in Kolkata from Singapore.
He was reportedly released on bail. The DRI had got a tip-off of a man who had more than 30 smuggled high-end premium watches of foreign brands at his home. Intelligence also said that the same man had gone to a foreign country and would be returning to India carrying more high-end premium watches of a foreign nation, which would be attempted to be smuggled into the nation without payment of duty.
A raid in his home which is located in an upscale complex in Lower Parel showed 34 such luxury watches, which have been reported to be more than 30 crore INR.
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Watches from premium foreign brands, including Greubel Forsey, Purnell, Louis Vuitton, MB and F, Mad, Rolex, Audemars Piguet, and Richard Mille were found after the search was conducted in the house, the Mumbai Zonal Unit of DRI stated in a release.
Greubel Forsey, a Swiss high-end watch company, started in 2004 is listed on the art and luxury business Christie’s list of ten independent watchmakers. The company describes itself as “sculptors of time, choreographers of the passing hours and architects of watch movement – with a screwdriver for a brush, a propelling pencil for a quill, and steel or gold as our support”.
It is also reported that Sheth would wear the luxury watches to bring them into India and urge they were old pieces to avoid getting customs duties.
As per the baggage rules, used personal effects (excluding jewelry) that are used as daily life necessities are duty-free. The goods over and above the free allowances shall be chargeable to customs duty 35% + an education cess of 3% i.e. to state the effective rate is 36.05%,” reads a section talking about the baggage rule on a government website.
It seems really frightening to get updates about rich people who adopt unfair means to make more money. The rich become richer, is not just a quote that has been existent since ancient times but a reality that is proved in every century. Although there are rules and regulations laid down upon all classes of people and all institutions, there are still people who break the rules to succeed in their lives.
It is not just about the smuggling of watches as mentioned in this case, but also about the reputation of companies that such unethical people get associated with. It not only brings them a bad reputation but also put a lot of doubt in the minds of common people about whom to trust and whom to not.
