Importer and 5 Customs officials, personnel in Batangas charged with smuggling

Five Bureau of Customs (BOC) officials and an importer now face various charges for the smuggling of P145 million worth of luxury cars to the Port of Batangas last July.

 

24 Oras reported Friday that Monacat Trading owner Rolando Cuevas and his associates Mermelinda dela Cruz and Flaviano dela Cruz violated the tariff and customs code, according to the customs bureau.

 

“Also charged in this case are five (5) officials and employees of the BOC Port of Batangas, namely Acting Assessor Eloise P. Suarez, Acting COOIII Maricel A. Manguiat, COOIII Noralyn T. Asaria,  Acting COOV Araceli Jasa, and Acting COOV Benjamin G. Manalo, Jr. for blindly processing the declaration on the subject Import Entries and several John Doe/s and Jane Doe/s who directly and/or indirectly participated and who are instrumental to the said smuggling,” the Bureau of Customs said.

 

Deputy Commissioner Ariel Nepomuceno said the charged BOC officials and personnel of the Por of Batangas are on administrative suspension.

 

"This is a warning to the people that we are watching the ports," BOC Comm. Alberto Lina said.

 

The  underdeclaration involved 14 luxury cars declared to be worth $400,000 or P18 million were valued at $1.1 million or P50 million pesos.

 

If the smuggling went undetected, Customs said the government would have lost P80 million in taxes.

 

According to an earlier report, the smuggled vehicles were a McLaren 450C, one Land Rover LR2, two units of Land Rover Defender 90, two units of Mercedez Benz C200, two units of Mercedez Benz GLK300, a Toyota Prado, a 2015 Ferrari California and four units of Toyota Land Cruiser GX.

 

The vehicles consigned to Monacat Trading came from the United Arab Emirates, Japan, and Hong Kong.  — Rie Takumi/ELR, GMA News