Japanese tourists held for secret money stash worth P2.25M

Two Japanese men were held by the Bureau of Customs for failing to declare a cache of money worth more than P2.25 million hidden among their belongings and on their person. BOC Deputy Collector for Passenger Service Thess Roque identified the two as Shitara Sakae and Katsuo Jimbo, both of whom arrived onboard Japan Airlines flight JAL 741 at around 1:40 pm. According to Roque, examiner Paul Cando found a stash of Japanese currency hidden inside a box of liquor that Sakae was holding. He also noticed Sakae trying to hand another bundle of cash to his companion, Jimbo, while Cando was inspecting Sakae's belongings. A subsequent pat-down uncovered more cash inside Sakae's pants pocket, forcing the BOC official to determine that Sakae was indeed trying to hide the money from him. The men were also found not to have declared the cash on their Customs Declaration Forms, making it a clear violation of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Circular No. 308 Series of 2001 as amended by BSP Circular No. 507, Series of 2006 and in relation to Section 2530 of the Customs and Tariff Code of the Philippines, which states that anyone bringing in or out of the country any foreign currency in excess of $10,000 or its equivalent must declare it in writing with Customs officials. The money found in Sakae's possession amounted to 4,528,000 Yen, or roughly PhP2.25 million. - BM, GMA News