Bank asks PCG to release employees detained for transporting P30-M cash

CEBU CITY—Officials of the United Coconut Planters Bank (UCPB) are asking the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) to release two of their employees and their security escorts who were taken into custody on Sunday night for attempting to transport around P30 million in cash to Cebu.

READ: 3 men under probe over misdeclared cargo containing P30M in cash

In a statement dated June 28, the bank said they already clarified with PCG on the transport of the cash, which they said was a “normal bank procedure.”

“The bank trusts that this misunderstanding will be resolved and its personnel be released the soonest possible time,” said the statement.

While they acknowledged that the four were being treated well, UCPB expressed concern over their prolonged detention and PCG’s plan to file charges against them.

The PCG apprehended four bank personnel at the Macabalan port in Cagayan de Oro City on Sunday night for possessing four boxes containing a total of P30 million in cash.

The group, consisting of two branch employees and two non-uniformed security escorts, was supposed to board a Trans-Asia vessel that would bring them to a port in Cebu.

They were supposed to bring the cash from the UCPB Velez branch in Cagayan to the Cebu Cash Center.

“The group was provided adequate security, having been transported by an armored vehicle to the Macabalan port while another armored vehicle was scheduled to pick them up at the Cebu port,” said the UCPB statement.

Bank officials were confident that their clarification would  warrant the release of their employees and their security escorts.

“The Bank clarified with port authorities that the cash transfer is a normal bank procedure which does not require prior approval of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas. The bank has already provided the PCG the pertinent documents to justify the possession and transfer of the cash,” said the UCPB statement. JPV/rga