Case Overview

Company W imported Italian branded wines. It was investigated on suspicion of smuggling ordinary goods. A, the company’s legal representative and general manager, decided to return to China and surrender. He instructed Shanghai Lixiaohua Law Firm and wrote a letter of repentance to the public security authority. Counsel attended the Anti-Smuggling Bureau of Shanghai Customs, lodged the confirmation of surrender on A’s behalf and notified the investigators of his inbound flight. A was subsequently released on bail pending trial.

The prosecution alleged that A, as the person directly in charge of Company W, had violated customs regulations for unlawful benefit and evaded customs supervision, underpaying duties of RMB 16.95 million — circumstances characterised as especially serious — and should be held liable for smuggling ordinary goods.

Defence Strategy

The defence concentrated on three points: first, that A had voluntarily returned and surrendered before any compulsory measure was imposed, a statutory mitigating circumstance; second, that the duty assessment required adjustment for the declared transaction value and for goods not actually released into domestic circulation; and third, that A’s role, cooperation and full restitution warranted a sentence below the statutory range.

Outcome

The court accepted the mitigation. A was convicted of smuggling ordinary goods and sentenced to a term substantially reduced in accordance with law.

Practical Note

In cross-border trade cases the timing and form of a surrender — who makes contact, when, and in what documentary form — frequently determines whether a defendant faces the statutory minimum or a reduced sentence. Early engagement with the investigating authority is usually more valuable than argument at trial.