The Bureau of Customs-Customs Intelligence and Investigation Service (BOC-CIIS) said over the weekend it seized P5.5 billion worth of illegally imported cigarettes and counterfeit items in a warehouse in Bulacan.
BOC-CIIS director Verne Enciso said BOC Commissioner Bien Rubio authorized the raid on information that a warehouse in Meycauayan, Bulacan was storing imported cigarettes and intellectual property rights (IPR) infringing goods.
“When the team got there to serve the LOA, they found a volume of stored imported cigarettes amounting to P500 million and P5 billion worth of IPR-infringing items,” he said.
Among the counterfeit items in the warehouse were gadgets, devices and garments.
CIIS-Manila International Container Port (CIIS-MICP) chief Alvin Enciso, team leader, underscored the importance of uncovering P5.5 billion worth of fake goods.
“We do not want to be a haven for counterfeit items. That is not the kind of message we want to send potential investors and even tourists. More so, that is not what the Marcos administration wants the country’s reputation to be,” he said.
“We have the manpower, the resources, and the technology to counter these illegal activities. There is no place in the Philippines for this and any organization that tries to pursue smuggling under our watch will have the law to answer to,” Enciso added.
After the operation, the agents secured the entrance and exit gates of the warehouses with padlocks and seals.
The warehouse owners and operators were given 15 days from the service of the LOA to submit documents to show that the seized goods were legitimately imported and that correct duties and taxes were duly paid pursuant to Section 224 of Customs Modernization and Tariff Act.
Without proper documents, the importers face charges of violating Section 117 (regulated importation and exportation) and Section 1400 (misdeclaration in goods declaration) in relation to Section 1113 (property subject to seizure and forfeiture) of the CMTA, the BOC said.
