CBI arrests customs official in graft case

New Delhi: The CBI on Wednesday arrested a senior customs official who had been evading arrest in an alleged bribery case registered last week. Deputy Commissioner, Customs, Sandeep Jot Singh, who is posted in Gujarat's Mundra town, allegedly took a bribe of Rs 30 lakh.

"He will be produced before the special CBI court in Ahmedabad tomorrow," the agency spokesperson said here.

The company of the complainant, a customs house agent, was hired by an Ahmedabad firm. 27 kg of gold was found in one of the import consignments of the firm in July.

Singh allegedly demanded Rs 40 lakh to clear the names of the relatives of the customs house agent, including his wife, in a case related to the import of 27 kg of gold, the CBI FIR said.

After negotiations, the customs official and the customs house agent agreed on a sum of Rs 30 lakh. The complainant was allegedly forced to pay Rs 10 lakh in July itself, the spokesperson said.

It is alleged that the deputy commissioner contacted the complainant on different occasions for the remaining Rs 20 lakh and asked him to deliver the amount to a person, he said.

"The CBI laid a trap and arrested the person on September 19 while accepting Rs 20 lakh on behalf of the deputy commissioner. The customs official had been absconding since then," the spokesperson said.