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Tuesday, January 20, 2004
NBI confiscates 25 luxury vehicles
By Garry A. Cabotaje
CEBU -- Twenty-five right-hand drive (RHD) luxury vehicles worth P12 million from Japan were seized from a warehouse in Mandaue City last Friday.
The importation of such vehicles is banned under Republic Act 8506.
The Toyota, Mitsubishi, Nissan and Isuzu sports utility vehicles (SUVs) apparently passed customs authorities because the seals of their container vans were already broken.
It's the biggest haul for the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) 7 in recent years.
The NBI 7 is checking a report that a son of customs official helped facilitate the release of the 25 imported luxury vehicles.
Questions also arose why it was the NBI 7 and not the Bureau of Customs (BOC) Port of Cebu that seized the units.
The vehicles are being kept at the NBI 7, almost occupying half of the bureau's compound in Barangay Capitol Site, Cebu City.
NBI 7 Chief Reynaldo Esmeralda said their investigation will focus on who are responsible for the release the vehicles to spouses Sulpicio "Pat" Jao and Dalisay Empeynado-Jao, of A.S. Fortuna St., Banilad, Mandaue City.
He said the Jao couple will be charged with violations of RA 8506, which bans the importation, registration and operation of RHD vehicles in any private or public street or highway.
Capt. Isidro Estrera, district commander of the Enforcement and Security Services of BOC Port of Cebu, said he is checking on his staff.
The NBI 7 will summon today Edwin Reyes, whom the bureau identified as the one who allegedly brokered the shipment of the imported RHD units.
Initial NBI 7 investigation showed that a BOC official's son had a hand in the release of the RHD units from the Cebu International Port (CIP) last Dec. 22, 23 and 24.
Reports reaching the NBI 7 said the 25 SUVs were smuggled directly from Japan and arrived at the CIP aboard a barge last November.
The units were kept in 15 40-footer container vans.
These are seven Mitsu-bishi Pajero, five Nissan Terrano, three Toyota Prado, three Toyota Surf, two Isuzu Bighorn, two Nissan Mistral, one Mitsu-bishi Space Gear and one Nissan Regulus, all automatic SUVs.
The bureau also seized a Mitsubishi Pajero, which has already been converted into a left-hand drive, because the owners failed to present documents such as certificate of registration, official receipts and certificate of payment.
Esmeralda said the price of a five-door Toyota Prado is pegged at P1 million while the rest of the other SUVs are priced between P300,000 and P600,0000.
NBI 7 agents raided the warehouse of the Jao couple after they secured a search warrant issued by Municipal Trial Court in Cities Judge Rogelio S. Locmayon, of Branch 1 in Mandaue City.
The Jao's warehouse compound on A.S. Fortuna St. is surrounded by a high perimeter fence, which made it difficult for the NBI to verify whether the RHD units had been kept there since last month.
Esmeralda said it took them time to transfer the SUVs from the warehouse to the NBI 7 because the Jao spouses refused to give the vehicles' keys to them.
Last year, operatives of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) 7 also confiscated four luxury vehicles from an auto shop in Mingla-nilla, Cebu.
The operation was made after the BOC deputized the CIDG to enforce tariff and customs laws even in areas considered as BOC's jurisdiction such as the CIP, Mactan-Cebu International Airport and the Mactan Economic Zone.
But BOC District Collector Billy Bibit of the Port of Cebu questioned the CIDG's authority saying the deputation already expired in January last year yet. with EOB
(January 20, 2004 issue)
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