Also, included as a defendant in the civil complaint is the Houston-based company Winland International Inc., doing business as Super Tire Inc.
Prosecutors alleged that the defendants conspired so that Winland could avoid anti-dumping duties associated with off-the-road (OTR) and light vehicle and truck (LVT) tires from China.
The defendants allegedly obtained falsified invoices and entry records of Chinese tire companies that were subject to a lower duty rate than the actual manufacturers of these tires. They submitted these fraudulent records to U.S. Customs officials when importing tires into the United States. As a result, Winland avoided paying higher duty rates.
According to the indictment, the value of these tires is more than $20.9 million. The defendant’s trade fraud scheme deprived the United States of more than $6.5 million in import duties.
“China and its industries want to rob, replicate, and replace American-made goods and technology. Illegally importing and dumping these goods is one way to systemically weaken American competitors. Whether direct espionage by the Chinese government or trade fraud like in this case, we will continue to investigate and prosecute every case we can,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Patrick for the Southern District of Texas.
