Fazle Masum of Glen Loy Place in Glasgow has been disqualified as a company director for eight years after he was caught importing raw tobacco hidden in vacuum-sealed tins disguised as furniture.
He was sanctioned at Glasgow Sheriff Court on Monday 8 June after Border Force officers intercepted the shipment at Grangemouth in January 2022, stopping a container addressed to Unique Enterprise Ltd, a company run by Masum.
Unique Enterprise Ltd did not hold the required HMRC approval to handle raw tobacco, which has been a legal requirement in the UK since 2017.
Masum even applied to Border Force to have the seized tobacco returned to him.
Unique Enterprise Ltd was issued with a £152,980 penalty following an HMRC investigation. The firm later went into liquidation owing almost £175,000 – nearly all of it the unpaid penalty.
Mike Smith, Chief Investigator at the Insolvency Service, said:
“Fazle Masum chose to import raw tobacco without the required approval and went to deliberate lengths to hide what he was doing. That is not conduct we expect from company directors.
“Director disqualification is one of the most important tools we have to protect the public. By securing this order, we are making sure Masum cannot put other companies, creditors or consumers at risk in the same way.”
Christina Brown, Head of Border Force North Region, said:
“Masum’s interception highlights Border Force’s vigilance against unlicensed tobacco and cigarette smuggling.
“Through intelligence-led multi-agency operations we are seizing hundreds of millions of illegal cigarettes, disrupting organised crime and protecting legitimate businesses.”
