MANILA: The Bureau of Customs (BoC) has seized more than P12 million worth of smuggled and counterfeit cigarettes in Davao City, its biggest haul of illegal cigarettes so far.
The bureau’s Enforcement Group conducted a raid in warehouses across the city which yielded a haul worth P12.68 million of fake cigarette sticks posing as products of Philip Morris Fortune Tobacco Corp.
“The raiding team of the Enforcement Group brought samples of Marlboro, More, Fortune, Philip Morris, Jackpot, Hope and other assorted cigarettes to Philip Morris Philippines, Inc. (PMFTC, Inc.) to examine the authenticity of these suspected smuggled imports,” the BoC said in a statement on Monday. “There, PMFTC, Inc. confirmed that the sample cigarettes were not produced by or with the permission of Philip Morris International, and are therefore counterfeit.”
The items were seized from storage facilities owned by the local HBTT Marketing Warehouse, the BoC said.
Warrants of seizures and detention were given to warehouse officials for nonpayment of tax duties, as well as for violating the Intellectual Property Rights law.
Customs officials conduct investigations and raids as part of its agency-wide efforts to curb smuggling, either coming from a tip or motu proprio.
SMUGGLED RICE, PYROTECHNICS
In a separate report, the agency also filed charges against two separate consignees for the alleged smuggling of rice and pyrotechnics, with the total worth of the contraband estimated to be more than P9.4 million.
Charges were filed against three officials of Rainbow Holdings, Inc. (RHI), including its President and Chief Executive Officer Eun Kyoung Son, Senior Adviser Soon Seong jeong, Executive Vice-President Diosdado Serbio, Jr., Corporate Financial Officer Rolando Ambrosio, Corporate Secretary Kathleen May Uy, as well as several unnamed individuals.
The case stemmed from five forty-foot container vans which arrived in Manila containing rice with a value of P4,945,558.80 which were declared as containing bitumen with RHI identified as the consignee of the goods.
The RHI officials are facing criminal cases for violating Section 3601, or unlawful importation, in relation to Section 101, which governs prohibited imports, of the amended Tariff and Customs Code of the Philippines. Ms. Son and the other officials are also being charged for violation of Article 172 of the Revised Penal Code, the provision on that law on falsification by private individual and the use of falsified documents.
Meanwhile, the BoC also filed a second set of charges against officials of Stellent Corp., with respondents including the firm’s president Charmayne D. Angeles, secretary Asuncion Angeles, treasurer Ma. Rhezy G. Ilada, incorporator and chairman Ruge Robert S. Ilada, and other unnamed individuals.
Stellent Corp. misdeclared imports said to be carrying thousands of cartons of tissue but were proved to have contained a still undetermined quantity of pyrotechnics.
The shipment originated from Hong Kong and arrived at the Manila International Container Port. It is valued at P4,500,000.
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