Phones, laptops, cameras seized in Tondo
Electronic devices worth millions of pesos and believed to have been smuggled into the country were seized in a raid in Manila Tuesday, the Bureau of Customs (BOC) said.
A team from Customs found items such as iPhone 7, laptops, cellular phones, cameras, tablets and music players, audio accessories, and gadgets for safety and security were found in a building in Lakandula Street, Tondo.
Acting on intelligence reports, Customs agents raided an online shop named Kim Store said to be selling high-end communication gadgets.
Customs said the store is owned by a certain Francis, a Filipino-Chinese businessman in Binondo who is engaged in online shopping.
Investigators were still validating intelligence reports to confirm the identity of the store owner in the next few days.
During the raid, staffers at the store failed to present import documents for the devices.
The Customs team was armed with Letter of Authority, Warrant of Seizure and Detention, and Mission Order issued by Customs Commissioner Nicanor Faeldon for the raid.
The store was padlocked and guarded by Customs agents.
Neil Estrella, chief of the Customs Intelligence and Investigation Service (CIIS), said there are many cases where high-end communication and electronic gadgets were brought into the country through misdeclaration, a form of technical smuggling where the correct duties and taxes are not paid.
“BOC, under my watch, will often conduct raids in warehouses, storehouses, and depots, to combat the malpractice and related crimes, and finally jail perpetrators, once and for all,” he said.