DRI nabs Surat trader for ₹44 crore customs duty evasion in walnut import

Mumbai: The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has arrested Gujarat-based trader Sneh Dipakbhai Kakadiya for allegedly orchestrating a ₹44 crore customs duty evasion scheme involving under-invoiced imports of in-shell walnuts from Chile.

Kakadiya, along with his father Dipak Kakadiya, is accused of misusing firms such as M/s Angel Enterprise and M/s Dipak Trading Co. to import large quantities of Chilean walnuts by significantly undervaluing their declared prices. The alleged fraud was aimed at evading the 100% basic customs duty applicable on the assessable value of the imports.

Investigations revealed that genuine invoices from Chilean suppliers were routed through a Dubai-based intermediary, M/s Euro Seven General Trading LLC. These invoices were then replaced with fake, lower-value documents showing walnut prices as low as $1.50/kg—well below the actual rate of $2.70/kg. This led to the clearance of over 3,610 metric tonnes of walnuts at artificially low prices, resulting in an estimated customs duty loss of more than ₹44 crore.

The DRI seized key evidence from Kakadiya’s email accounts, including original and forged invoices, as well as insurance documents. Citing a risk of evidence tampering and potential witness influence, the DRI also noted that Kakadiya was caught at Surat International Airport on June 25 while attempting to leave the country. DeshGujarat