OUT of the 30 vehicles of the Discaya couple now under the custody and control of the Bureau of Customs (BOC), eight are considered “very much problematic,” which may result in forfeiture and seizure.
In a press conference, BOC Commissioner Ariel Francisco Nepomuceno said the following vehicles of the Discayas do not have import entry and certificate of payment records, which may mean these were “smuggled:”
Rolls-Royce
Bentley Bentayga
Toyota Tundra
Toyota Sequoia
Mercedes-AMG G63
Mercedes-Benz G500
Toyota Land Cruiser 300
Lincoln Navigator
“Ibig sabihin, walang patunay na kung ano ang pinagbayaran niya. So ayan, magiging subject ito noong warrant of seizure and detention namin for forfeiture proceedings,” Nepomuceno said.
(This means there is no proof of what he actually paid for. So, this will be subject to our warrant of seizure and detention for forfeiture proceedings.)
Nepomuceno said the Discaya couple were given 15 days to provide the necessary documentation for the above-mentioned luxury cars.
He said seven more high-end vehicles of the Discayas will also undergo investigation, as they have import entry documents but lack a certificate of payment, which is also a “red flag.”
Nepomuceno said 14 other vehicles of the Discayas were bought from authorized sellers but will still undergo post-entry audit.
He said five of the luxury vehicles entered through the Batangas port, three in Cebu, six from the Port of Manila, seven through the Manila International Container Port, and eight from still-unknown ports.
“Ang mga nagpasok nito ay mga consignees on record. Ang mga nagpasok nito ay hindi Discaya family sa record, unless ‘yung mga nagpasok nito later on sasabihin nila na ginamit lang po nila ang kanilang mga pangalan or kumpanya,” Nepomuceno said.
(Those who brought these in are the consignees on record. The Discaya family is not listed on record as the ones who brought them in, unless later on those consignees claim that their names or companies were only used.)
“So, sa step 1 natin, on record, may mga iba’t-ibang consignees po na nagpasok ng mga sasakyan at ‘yung mga may-ari din nito, on the other hand, ay Discaya family,” he added.
(So, in step 1, on record, there are different consignees who brought in the vehicles, but on the other hand, the owners of these are the Discaya family.)
Nepomuceno said the agency has at least 10 persons of interest in connection with the alleged “illegal entry” of the Discayas’ luxury cars.
“Pagpapaliwanagin natin kung bakit nakalusot o dumaan sa kanila ang mga sasakyan ng hindi nagkaroon ng tamang dokumento at hindi nagbayad ng tama. We have to make our own people accountable,” Nepomuceno said.
(We will require them to explain why the vehicles passed through without the proper documents and without the correct payment. We have to make our own people accountable.)
The commissioner said they will also look into the vehicles of other personalities mentioned amid the ongoing investigation into the anomalous flood control projects.
On Monday, September 8, during the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee inquiry into the anomalous flood control projects, former Bulacan First District assistant engineer Brice Ericson Hernandez was grilled by senators about his vehicles, which include a Toyota Supra worth P4 million, a Dodge Challenger worth P7 million, a 2022 Ducati motorcycle worth P2.2 million, and a BMW R2150 worth P1.2 million.
His wife owns a Lamborghini Urus Performante worth around P30 million. (TPM/SunStar Philippines)