Unioil faces smuggling raps

The Bureau of Customs (BOC) filed yesterday smuggling charges at the Department of Justice (DOJ) against officials of independent oil company Unioil for allegedly making unlawful withdrawals of oil products amounting to P181.9 million.

Charged under the BoC-Run After The Smugglers (RATS) program were Paul Chi Ting Co, chairman of Unioil and Oilink, another firm earlier involved in smuggling charges; officers and directors of Unioil Kenneth Pundadera, Manuel Co, Sally Co, Stanley Tan, and Roschelle Vivencio; officers and directors of Oilink Liza Magaway, Janice Co, Vivencio Abano, Greg Yu, and Edwin Agustin; and licensed customs broker Victor Piamonte. They reportedly violated provisions of the Tariff and Customs Code of the Philippines.

The oil products were covered by the warrants of seizure and detention (WSD) earlier issued by District Collector Horacio Suansing on the oil products of Oilink for alleged non-payment of duties and taxes.

Unioil reportedly asked permission from the agency to withdraw oil products. It was later learned that part of the withdrawn oil products was those that were covered by the WSD. This was in violation of the Tariff and Customs Code of the Philippines (TCCP) provisions.

Aside from Unioil, the BoC also filed smuggling cases against Rell International Trading which allegedly imported P3.3 million worth of onions from India.

The vegetables reportedly entered the country without the necessary import permit and Plant Quarantine Clearance. This is again against the TCCP.

Named respondent was Rell proprietor Braulio Jonson Lagrisola.

The third case was the unlawful importation of three luxury vehicles worth P2.3 million that was consigned to Global International. It consisted of Porche Boxter ’98, Porche ’96 model and the Porche 911 ’94 model.

The vehicles arrived from the United States and entered the country through the Subic Bay Free Port Zone. But reports showed that these were allegedly illegally released from the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA).

This was in violation of the Land Transportation Office (LTO), in violation of the TCCP, particularly “An Act Providing for the Issuance of Permanent Number Plates to Owners of Motor Vehicles and Trailer.”