The CCAC uncovered that a chief of the Macao Customs Service allegedly capitalised on his powers and functions and illegally instructed his subordinates not to enforce the law according to the normal procedure. The chief, who asked the customs officers to release the seized goods that had not been declared, allegedly committed dereliction of duty under the Penal Code. The case has been referred to the Public Prosecutions Office.
In early 2017, when inspecting the imported goods to be taken delivery of by a freight forwarder, the customs officers at one of the Macao checkpoints discovered a batch of illegally imported goods that had not been declared according to the law. The seized goods even included items that require import licenses. According to the provisions of the Foreign Trade Law, those goods that were not declared should be seized and confiscated, and the actor shall also be subject to the procedure for penalties. However, upon coming to know that the relevant goods were seized by the customs officers, a senior officer of the involved freight forwarder made a phone call to the above-said chief of the Macao Customs, who then immediately instructed the personnel in charge of customs examination not to detain the seized goods that had not been declared according to the law.
Eventually, due to the intervention of the chief, the goods in question were released illegally by the customs officers. Those items without import licenses were not seized or confiscated according to the law. They were successfully released with the assistance from the chief. The necessary procedure for penalties was not initiated either. The chief involved allegedly committed dereliction of duty provided for in Article 333 of the Penal Code and may be subject to imprisonment of up to five years.