De Lima: Davao rice smuggling king is real

MANILA, Philippines - Justice Secretary Leila de Lima on Monday said that the certain David Tan believed to be orchestrating the multi-billion peso rice smuggling activities in Davao is a real person.

Belying Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte's claims that Tan is "fictitious," De Lima said that it is the alias of Davidson Bangayan, a Chinese-Filipino trader being tracked down by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI).

Update: Alleged smuggler 'David Tan' arrested after meeting De Lima

"The initial results of the verification and investigation of the NBI is that this David Tan actually exists. This Davidson Bangayan [and David Tan], we believe or NBI believes, is one and the same person," De Lima said.

She also said that state investigators are looking into Tan's alleged involvement in rice smuggling, which has cost the government billions in revenue and threatening the livelihood of local farmers.

"The NBI knows his addresses. The NBI knows who he is. We have pictures of him, and [we know] the businesses that he runs. Parang lumalabas na one-man cartel siya," De Lima added.

Lawyer Virgilio Mendez, NBI deputy director for regional operations and services, had said in a previous report that the NBI has confirmed that David Tan and Davidson Bangayan are one and the same person.

The NBI is also looking into Tan's possible connections and protectors from the Bureau of Customs and other government branches.

Duterte, who is also conducting an investigation on smuggling in his city, vowed to crack down on illegal trading.

The NBI, meanwhile, has been criticized by Jesus Arranza, Federation of Philippine Industries president, for failing to arrest four lead rice smugglers identified in a Senate joint committee hearing last year.

Arranza said the Singaporean firm named Davidson Bangayan as respondent in a civil case in the Calamba City Regional Trial Court on July 13, 2005.

Read: NBI hit over failure to arrest 4 rice smugglers | Duterte stands by 'kill' threat vs rice smugglers