A man who had been on the run for over a year has been arrested by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) in Ludhiana for masterminding a ₹189 crore customs duty evasion racket.

According to officials, the accused diverted duty-free imported goods—meant for export production—from bonded warehouses into the domestic market using fake business owners of three firms. This was done to avoid paying heavy customs duties, which can be as high as 100% of the goods’ value.

To fake compliance with export rules, the accused exported counterfeit goods made from unrelated materials instead of using the duty-free imports.

He was produced in court on Sunday and is now in DRI custody for further questioning. The investigation is still ongoing.