Sports car, 2 jet skis seized at Cebu port

CEBU CITY—The Bureau of Customs seized a sports car and two jet skis after these separately arrived at the Cebu port.

The two jet skis were inside a 40-footer van consigned to a Cebu-based company and were declared as household items when they arrived on Feb. 6.

“Upon x-ray, we found the jet skis which were not on the documents,” Cebu District Collector Elvira Cruz said.

The two-door 2008 Porsche sports car was properly declared when it arrived at the Cebu International Port last week but its consignee – a private individual – didn’t have a permit to import, she added.

A shipment from other countries should have an import permit with a corresponding payment amounting to half of the shipment’s amount, Cruz explained.

A statement from the BOC pegged the value of the jet skis at P300,000 to P400,000 each and the second-hand sports car at P1.5 million.

All items came from the United States.

Customs Commissioner Isidro Lapeña, who opened the container vans on Friday morning, said a warrant of seizure and detention has been issued against the shipments.

“There is an investigation going on and once it is completed, appropriate charges will be filed against the consignees,” said Lapeña.

Lapeña said the seizure of the two shipments should serve as a stern warning to those involved in smuggling.

“We will continue our intensified campaign against smuggling as well as the checking of shipments arriving from (other) countries,” Lapeña said.