Philippine Customs Commissioner Isidro Lapeña vows to make accountable the individuals involved in the unauthorized release of 105 alerted containers from the Port of Manila (POM) as he gave updates on the ongoing investigation of the case.
“I will see to it that they will answer for it,” Lapeña told media during the March 26 inspection of the two warehouses where the illegally released containers were found by BOC agents.
BOC on March 22 announced that on March 19, it discovered that 105 alerted containers from China were withdrawn from POM without proper release clearances and documents.
READ: BOC probes unauthorized withdrawal of 105 containers from Port of Manila
While the duties and taxes of the 105 containers had been paid, the shipments were found to have violated Section 1400 (misdeclaration, misclassification, and undervaluation in goods declaration) of the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act (CMTA). The shipments were thus placed under alert order by the Office of the Commissioner (OCOM).
Upon inventory, the POM Office of the District Collector found 103 containers were illegally released on March 17, while the two other containers were immediately apprehended before they could exit through the terminal gates.
Lapeña alleged this kind of modus operandi “has been going on for quite some time and this is not the first time that they have done this.”
“This is a well-entrenched syndicate and I am determined to dismantle and totally stop them,” the BOC chief said.
As of March 26, Lapeña said, three more BOC Port of Manila officers have been recommended for preventive suspension. These are POM Data Monitoring unit head Crisanto Brecia, and customs operations officers III Gina Atendido and Ma. Corazon Andal.
Previously recommended for preventive suspension were POM Formal Entry Division (FED) chief Antonio Meliton Pascual and assistant chief Marilyn Estur.
Pascual and Estur have earlier denied involvement in the incident, and claimed the signatures in the memoranda releasing the shipments were forged, “noting the apparent inconsistencies in the documents submitted to the ATI (Asian Terminals Inc),” Lapeña said. This claim, however, is still subject to investigation. ATI operates the Manila South Harbor.
Lapeña clarified the preventive suspension does not mean the customs officers are guilty, but is just necessary to make sure the officers do not influence the ongoing investigation.
Warehouses raided
As of March 26, an estimated 85 containers have been located by BOC’s Enforcement and Security Service and Customs Intelligence and Investigation Service (CIIS).
Of the 85 containers, 32 were found in a warehouse in Sterling Industrial Park, Libtong, Meycauayan, Bulacan.
On inspecting the warehouse, owned by Homms Trading Corp., BOC agents found crates of tiles, as well as logbooks with information that when cross-checked with BOC records was similar to the data on the 32 missing containers.
Another warehouse located in the industrial park and also owned by Homms Trading was inspected. While no logbook was found, BOC said the warehouse contained crates of tiles similar to those in the other Homms warehouse.
Lapeña said it “can be safely concluded” that the shipments in the second warehouse are part of the illegally withdrawn shipments. When asked by BOC, five employees in the second warehouse were unable to provide documents or evidence that the shipments inside had paid their duties and taxes.
BOC is also tracing the whereabouts of the truck drivers who delivered the shipments to determine if other containers were transported to other locations. Lapeña said they will continue looking for the 20 missing containers.
Customs police are currently deployed at the two Homms warehouses to prevent release of the items inside.
Value grossly understated
Lapeña believes the shipments in the two warehouses number not just 85 containers, but could even be around 100. BOC is still determining the final number of containers in the two warehouses, as well as the total value of the 105 shipments.
Earlier, POM district collector Atty. Vener Baquiran said the declared amount of the 105 containers was P69 million, but this could still go up as the shipments were grossly undervalued, thus, the issuance of alert orders.
Lapeña said port operator ATI, from where the 105 shipments were released, on March 26 “expressed their cooperation with the ongoing investigation of the bureau.”
BOC earlier said it is investigating possible collusion between ATI personnel, importers, and customs personnel.
According to Lapeña, investigation showed that a certain Darwin Dalmacio, a shift manager at ATI, received the forged memorandum with fake signature from BOC’s FED that indicated the continuous processing of the alerted shipments.
Reportedly, Dalmacio was also the one who allegedly untagged in ATI’s system the alert label on the shipments, prompting their release.
Baquiran said Dalmacio received only a memorandum from the FED, with none of the necessary attached documents and the memorandum from the commissioner lifting the alert order on the shipments.
CIIS director Adzhar Albani said Dalmacio has not yet explained his side of the issue, but added that BOC will “give him the opportunity to answer that allegation.”
BOC will subpoena all personalities involved in the unauthorized release of the 105 containers, Lapeña said.
The agency has already revoked the accreditation of the importers that brought in the 105 containers. These importers are Abundancegain Indent Trading Corp., Imperial Foods and Agricultural Products, Megaabundancesteel Indent Trading Corp., Paragon Platinum International, Premiere Oak Lumber and Wood Products, and Spectrum Highlands Marketing Corp.
The accreditation of the shipments’ customs brokers has also been suspended. These are Bernardine Miranda, Mohamad Salman, and Homaidi Sarip Ibrahim. Appropriate charges will be filed if warranted by the investigation.
If proven guilty, involved personnel of the BOC will be facing administrative charges. The shipments’ importers and customs brokers as well as ATI and BOC personnel found involved may face criminal charges. – Roumina Pablo
