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necessity for the prosecution to prove acts of deceit practised on a customs officer
in his presence.”
In the Trinidad and Tobago Court of Appeal decision of Azard Khan (Customs and Excise
Officer) v. Bobby Ashram Sanhai and Glen Mulchansingh [Mag. App. No. 36 of 2015] the Court,
after considering the cases of Attorney General’s Reference (No. 1 of 1981), R v. Panayi and
Karte [1989] 1 W.L.R 187 and R v. Zlatic (1993) 2 S.C.R 29, opined at paragraph 34 that:
“The Magistrate, therefore, had to examine the evidence that there was some
dishonest intent in the agreement between the first and second respondents and
the dishonesty must have been intended to “evade the laws and restrictions of
customs relating to the delivery of goods”. The Magistrate was of the view,
essentially, that “dishonest conduct” had not been established on the
prosecution’s case and one could well understand why he may have done so since
the evidence before him was that there was a promise to pay the same day, that
promise was fulfilled and there was nothing to indicate on the evidence that there
was a deliberate intention that delivery of the goods be taken before the payment
was made. The agreement was that the first respondent would sign the delivery
note before payment. There was no evidence that the agreement contemplated that
the delivery would actually be effect before payment. It might have been different
if the second respondent, who negotiated the impugned compromise had
attempted to take delivery himself before the duties were paid. That would smack
of dishonesty.”
Finally, steps taken abroad in connection with a fraudulent evasion or attempt at fraudulent
evasion can be the subject of proceedings in the country where those acts were directed. In R v.
Wall [1974] 2 All ER 245, the Court enunciated:
“So here there is one offence, that of being knowingly concerned in fraudulent
evasion on 17 February 1973, and just as in R v Millar the part played by the
company was played earlier and in another country, so here if that was the only
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