Customs issues hold order vs Vietnamese cargo ship

BUTUAN CITY — The Bureau of Customs here issued a hold order against a Vietnamese cargo ship under investigation for charges of selling suspected pilfered National Food Authority (NFA) rice.

Customs Officer Josefa Villasenior said her office has issued the order against the foreign vessel after it was discovered selling sacks of stolen NFA rice when it docked at the Punta Diwata Pont near the shoreline of coastal Barangay Vinapor, Carmen, Agusan del Norte last Thursday.

The boat is now under the custody of the Bureau of Customs office at the International Port of Nasipit, Agusan del Norte, pending investigation of the pilfering charges.

The cargo ship was identified as M/V Xuang Viet Hei Phong, a Vietnamese registered cargo vessel.

Some 26 sacks of rice were confiscated by the combined team of PNP Maritime, PNP Regional Intelligence Office, Coast Guard, Bureau of Customs, local police and the Navy, SPO4 Proculo Amora division head of the Regional PNP Maritime office said.

The 26 sacks of confiscated rice were believed to be part of suspected pilfered NFA rice imported from Vietnam sold to residents in the area, Amora told The STAR in an interview.

"In sworn statements by witnesses, the Vietnamese cargo ship was reportedly seen selling sacks of rice to local residents in the area. Sometimes the ship personnel accepts raw native chickens, domesticated animals in exchange of the rice," Amora said.

He said the cargo ship arrived from Vietnam last week and disembarked some 66,300 sacks of imported Vietnam rice at the Surigao City port.

"According to the ship’s manifest, the original volume of shipment was 70,000 sacks but when it disembarked its cargo, only 66,300 were unloaded," he said.

M/V Xuang Viet He Phong was heading towards Medina in Misamis Oriental to load copra before heading back to Vietnam when authorities intercepted the ship at the Punta Diwata Point in Vinapor, Carmen, Agusan del Norte.

Police said at first the ship personnel were selling a sack of rice for P750, which was later increased to P850.