THE Bureau of Customs (BOC) is set to auction 13 luxury vehicles owned by government contractors Cezarah Rowena ‘Sarah’ C. Discaya and spouse Pacifico ‘Curlee’ F. Discaya II on November 15 to generate additional revenues for the government.
Customs Assistant Commissioner Vincent Philip C. Maronilla told reporters last Wednesday that the Discayas were given 15 days to submit the necessary documents.
These documents, however, were found ‘unsatisfactory’ by the BOC, Maronilla added. He said that the BOC verified the documents were incomplete and the payments were deficient.
‘In fact, incompleteness of being sure that it was actually legally imported to the Philippines is the basis why we are forfeiting these cars and scheduling them for auction,’ Maronilla said.
The BOC will be ‘fair’ in valuing the luxury cars since its obligation in setting the floor price is to ensure that the government will not be at a disadvantage, he added.
The government is looking at an additional P100 million to over P200 million in additional revenues should these cars be sold at the auction, according to Maronilla.
Since the smuggled cars were seized by the BOC due to irregularities in their importation and documentation, the Customs official assured potential buyers that the vehicles would not face legal issues later on.
‘Remember that these cars will be sold by the Bureau of Customs. So, if you buy them, you can be assured that they will not be chased,’ Maronilla said. ‘They will go through the right process since we will issue certifications to you that you bought them at the auction. So, you will be able to use them without any problem.’
The vehicles that will be up for sale are the Toyota Tundra, Toyota Sequoia, Rolls-Royce Cullinan, Mercedes-Benz AMG G63 AMG SUV, Mercedes-Benz G 500, Lincoln Navigator 2021, Bentley Bentayga, Lincoln Navigator 2024, GMC Yukon Denali, Cadillac Escalade 2021, Maserati Levante Modena, GMC Yukon XL Denali and Cadillac Escalade ESV.
The importers of these vehicles may face charges for illegal importation under the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act (Republic Act 10863), Maronilla said.
If it is proven that the Discayas knew about or conspired in the smuggling, they could also face illegal importation charges.
‘If our investigations reveal that the Discayas are in cahoots with the importers, then their penalties will be the same,’ Maronilla said.
‘Our investigation is ongoing and we’re just getting testimonies and validating some of the documents,’ he added, noting that the report and the recommendations for filing of cases will be done after the auction process.
As for the 17 vehicles owned by the Discayas and now in BOC’s custody, these are subject to transaction audit by the Post-Clearance Audit Group.