BOC, Treasury: Smuggled luxury cars to auctioned to raise funds for pandemic response

Smuggled luxury vehicles seized by the Bureau of Customs (BOC) will be auctioned in the next two weeks instead of facing destruction as the government explores ways to boost its coffers to respond to the COVID-19 crisis.

In a joint statement on Thursday, the BOC and the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) said the luxury vehicles confiscated by the Customs will be disposed of through public auction “as instructed by Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez in efforts to raise additional funds for the national government’s continuing pandemic response.”

The two agencies, along with the Land Bank of the Philippines, formed an Inter-Agency Auction Committee through a memorandum of agreement signed on December 1, 2021.

The inter-agency committee will ensure transparency of the auction process and to promote competition through broad dissemination of auction information.

The inaugural auction will be held at the BTr on December 13, 2021.

Five luxury vehicles will be up for grabs, which include a 2008 Ferrari Scuderia 430, 2001 Mercedes Benz E220, “all of which were seized in May and June this year and were issued final and executory orders of forfeiture by the BOC.”

The entire auction process will be live-streamed through the official Facebook pages of the three agencies.

Interested bidders can register with the BOC from December 2 to 9, 2021. Inspection dates are set on December 9 to 10, 2021 at PUC Ground, Gate 3, South Harbor, Port Area, Manila. — Ted Cordero/RSJ, GMA News