Customs execs spend 8 hours counting seized 88-M Japanese yen

MANILA, Philippines - Customs officials at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) terminal 1 took more than eight hours to count and record 88 million Japanese yen and US$170,000 and casino chips worth over P1 million seized from three Japanese passengers who failed to declare their cash when they arrived Thursday night at the airport.

Six customs examiners started counting the 10,000 Japanese yen bills worth P46,880,000 and the $100 bills at around 10 p.m. Thursday and finished past 8 a.m. yesterday, with the three Japanese suspects already asleep while the whole process was recorded by close circuit television.

Customs duty-collector Agnes Domines identified the three Japanese passengers as Takashi Koichi, Suzuki Yuzo and Tereshima Seita who arrived from Narita, Japan on board Japan Airlines flight JL 745.

Customs supervisor Carol Dofitas and customs police chief Col. Marlon Alameda Domines said the three Japanese, who lined up at three different counters, failed to declare their cash when asked by customs examiners Jaypee Mabuhay, Irene Alla and Paula Manlangit if they had anything to declare.

She said that every passenger is allowed to bring in and out of the country P10,000 cash and foreign currency less than $10,000 as part of the efforts to curb money laundering and dollar smuggling.

Customs police chief Col. Marlon Alameda told The STAR that before Typhoon Maring hit the country last week, the Customs Intelligence and Investigation Services (CIIS) received information that three Japanese passengers would bring in a large amount of foreign currency to Manila.       

Airport authorities were alerted regarding the possible entry of the three Japanese since two weeks ago, Alameda added. – With Rainier Allan Ronda