25 smuggled vehicles found in 16 container vans in Subic
At least 16 overstaying container vans at the Subic Bay Freeport on Thursday yielded 25 vehicles, including five luxury cars, that could have earned the government P70 million in taxes, Presidential Anti-Smuggling Group chief Antonio Villar Jr. said.
He said the vehicles could have earned more than P200 million for the government if these were auctioned off.
"These are among the vehicles that are being smuggled out of the freeport," Villar told the Philippine Daily Inquirer by telephone on Thursday.
The five luxury cars are Porsche, Lamborghini, BMW, Porsche Carrera and Ferrari, he said.
The taxes for each of these cars ranged from P4 million to P8 million, he said.
The taxes on the 20 other imported cars cost about P2 million each.
According to Villar, the cars have been kept at the freeport for more than 60 days. By law, the government could confiscate goods that have been unclaimed and abandoned after a month, he said.
"What's strange here is that while the cars have overstayed, the Bureau of Customs has not auctioned them off," he said.
Investigations showed that most of the consignees were fictitious.
Villar said the government could earn about P5 billion from the sales of the items in those containers.
The racket, he said, was also done in South Harbor by a certain "Big Mama" who consigned and later took away shipments of coffee beans worth P40 million.
He could not immediately tell the actual extent of car smuggling at the Subic freeport and the losses in government taxes from the scheme.
Past and present officials of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority intercepted shipments of smuggled items from time to time but Inquirer sources said the racket was "extensive."
Big car manufacturers had sought a stop to the importation of used vehicles through the Subic freeport, saying it was being used as a front for smuggling. In some instances, imported cars were brought in as misdeclared items. By Tonette Orejas - Inquirer Central Luzon Desk
He said the vehicles could have earned more than P200 million for the government if these were auctioned off.
"These are among the vehicles that are being smuggled out of the freeport," Villar told the Philippine Daily Inquirer by telephone on Thursday.
The five luxury cars are Porsche, Lamborghini, BMW, Porsche Carrera and Ferrari, he said.
The taxes for each of these cars ranged from P4 million to P8 million, he said.
The taxes on the 20 other imported cars cost about P2 million each.
According to Villar, the cars have been kept at the freeport for more than 60 days. By law, the government could confiscate goods that have been unclaimed and abandoned after a month, he said.
"What's strange here is that while the cars have overstayed, the Bureau of Customs has not auctioned them off," he said.
Investigations showed that most of the consignees were fictitious.
Villar said the government could earn about P5 billion from the sales of the items in those containers.
The racket, he said, was also done in South Harbor by a certain "Big Mama" who consigned and later took away shipments of coffee beans worth P40 million.
He could not immediately tell the actual extent of car smuggling at the Subic freeport and the losses in government taxes from the scheme.
Past and present officials of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority intercepted shipments of smuggled items from time to time but Inquirer sources said the racket was "extensive."
Big car manufacturers had sought a stop to the importation of used vehicles through the Subic freeport, saying it was being used as a front for smuggling. In some instances, imported cars were brought in as misdeclared items. By Tonette Orejas - Inquirer Central Luzon Desk
Labels: sbma, smuggling, Subic Freeport
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