2 traders, broker charged for drugs, tariff code violations

Thursday, February 23, 2012

THE Bureau of Customs (BOC) on Thursday filed before the Department of Justice (DOJ) cases against two traders and a customs broker for violation of the Tariffs and Customs Code of the Philippines (TCCP) and the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act.

The cases were filed two months after the trio attempted to slip illegal drugs and precursor chemicals and other laboratory equipment and materials used for the manufacture of illegal drug "ecstacy" among other illegal substances worth more than P50 million.

Charged were Wilfredo Armario Bitancor, owner of W.A. Bitancor, a Binondo based trading company and his broker Franco Robiso Celso, together with trader Marvin Simon B. Sia.

Bitancor's shipment of 160 drums of sulphuric acid and N-Butyl Acetate, 445 bags of Caustic Soda, Oxychem and Hypochloride solutions and laboratory equipment and materials worth P38 million pesos were stacked in seven twenty footer container vans were seized in December last year.

On the other hand, Sia's shipment of nine packages of metamphetamine hydrochloride or shabu and Piperonal, a precursor for the production of ecstacy worth P17.6 million, which were misdeclared as sodium tungstate were apprehended in January.

"The increasing number of seizures of big volumes of dangerous drugs, controlled precursors and essential chemicals show the extent of drug abuse and the illegal drug trade in the country," said Customs Commissioner Ruffy Biazon, who led the filing of the charges.

The Bitancor and Sia cases are the 11th and 12th cases filed by the BOC against smugglers during the five months leadership of Biazon. (FP/Sunnex)