Second tax raps filed vs cigarette manufacturer

The Bureau of International Revenue (BIR) filed Tuesday a second tax evasion complaint against cigarette manufacturer Mighty Corp. before the Department of Justice (DOJ) for the alleged use of fake tax stamps.

The second criminal complaint against the Bulacan-based firm accused its officers of non-payment of excise taxes and the use of counterfeit BIR stamps.

The cigarette firm, according to the complaint, owed the government P26.93 billion in excise taxes.

The tax liabilities were assessed following the Bureau of Customs’ raid at the warehouses of Mighty Corp. in San Ildefonso, Bulacan, where over 81 million packs of cigarette with fake tax stamps were seized.

Using a gadget to test the authenticity of revenue stamps, the BOC discovered that 100 percent of the total tax stamps were counterfeit.

The BIR also noted that Mighty’s warehouses in San Ildefonso are not registered with the BIR as certified by the Excise Large Taxpayer Regulatory Division.

This is the second case filed against the 72-year-old cigarette firm.

The first complaint, also filed by the BIR last March 22, assessed the company of tax liabilities worth P9.564 billion.

It is now undergoing preliminary investigation at the DOJ.

Named as respondents in the two criminal complaints are Mighty president Edilberto Adan, executive vice president Oscar Barrientos, assistant corporate secretary Alexander Wongchuking and treasurer Ernesto Victa. /