Texas Company Ordered to Pay Over $1.6 Million in Illegally Evaded Duties
Texas-based industrial equipment supplier Unicat was ordered to pay $1,655,189.57 in unpaid duties to CBP after it illegally evaded tariffs on imported chemical catalysts. The company’s former CEO, Mani Erfan, “devised and implemented a tariff avoidance scheme” in which the company falsely understated the value of its imported catalysts and the duties owed to CBP, DOJ said. The company sourced most of its catalysts from China, the agency said.
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Unicat and Erfan also were fined millions of dollars as part of a broader scheme to violate other trade laws, including illegal sales or bids involving Iran, Venezuela, Syria and Cuba. Erfan pleaded guilty to multiple charges, including conspiring to violate U.S. sanctions, and agreed to pay $1.6 million as part of a separate plea deal.
The violations were discovered by U.K.-based private equity firm White Deer Management, which bought Unicat in 2021 and reported the violations to DOJ one month later.