Weed out dummy firms used in smuggling, BOC told

THE HOUSE ways and means committee wants the Bureau of Customs (BOC) to clean up its list of 12,810 importers and brokers to weed out dummy firms used by smugglers to bring in luxury cars, rice, meat and other commodities.

This was the recommendation of committee members during the House probe of Monacat Trading and AMEST Trading owned by Danilo “Danny” Tan Chua and Mary Anne Claudette D. Arellano who were caught smuggling luxury vehicles and vans at the Manila International Container Port, Harbor Centerpoint, Manila and Batangas ports.

Committee vice chair and Valenzuela Rep. Magtanggol Gunigundo said the BOC should assess the financial capability of registered importers to ensure that only legitimate importers would be allowed to bring goods into the country and not fly-by-night trading firms which allow themselves to be used by smugglers.

Leyte Rep. Andres Salvacion said the BOC had a “long tradition” of brokers’ licenses for rent or sale to smugglers.

Salvacion dismissed the claim of AMEST’s Arellano, through her lawyer Reynaldo Nicolas, that the trading firm was only used as a conduit to bring in 268 fully-assembled, smuggled vehicles that were seized by the BOC at the Port of Manila, Port of Batangas, Manila International Container Port and Harbor Centerpoint.

Nicolas claimed that Arellano did not know her firm was used for the shipment.

AMEST is a registered automotive spare parts importer but committee members were surprised that its biggest shipments were of Hyundai Starex vans.

Salvacion questioned why the BOC was allowing registered brokers to be used as fronts by other importers.

Sharing passwords

“Whether or not AMEST allowed others to use its import license, the bottom line is it is in cahoots with the smugglers. So why accredit the brokers in the first place when the BOC would allow them to share their passwords for imports,” said Salvacion.

Gunigundo was also skeptical about Chua, who denied that he owned AMEST and Monacat which was caught bringing in 14 luxury vehicles— Ferraris, McLarens, Mercedes Benz AMGs, Range Rovers and Land Cruisers—through the Batangas port in August.

In his testimony, Chua claimed that his main business was the supply of building scaffoldings and metal for jeepney bodies. He said he did not import cars and that he only referred his friends to “Speed Seven,” an imported car dealer along Timog Avenue, Quezon City.

Aside from Chua and Arellano, committee chair and Marikina Rep. Romero Quimbo asked the BOC for more information on a certain “Kenneth Causon” who he believed was one of the country’s biggest vehicle smugglers.