NBI readies raps vs trader selling fake food products

The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) is set to file piracy charges against a Filipino-Chinese national after the bureau uncovered some P10 million worth of fake Nestle products at his warehouse.

Regional Director Ruel Lasala, NBI-National Capital Region (NCR), said they would file violation of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Code charges against So Eng Ge, the alleged owner of a clandestine business once they complete the necessary documentation.

The NBI would have to wait for the case to be raffled off to a lower court before a warrant of arrest against So can be issued.

Based on the receipts and invoices, So has been selling the bogus products in different provinces for about a year.

"We will file the charges within the next two weeks because we are still waiting for a certification from the Bureau of Food and Drugs (BFAD) to confirm if the Nestle products we confiscated are indeed fake. But prior to our operation, Nestle Corp. has already certified that products were fake," Lasala said.

He said the Nestle representative even commented that it was the biggest haul of counterfeit products in the Philippines, noting that the operation was similar to a production segment of Nestle.

Elements of the NBI-NCR, headed by Executive Officer Rosauro Bautista, confiscated seven truckloads of finished Nestle products that included Coffeemate, Nescafe, Bear Brand and Milo.

The suspect was able to produce the items in bulk because he had modern equipment like sealers and cutters. Nine machines shipped from China were allegedly used to speed up the process in the production of Nestle sachet products. One machine can produce more than 100,000 finished products.

Bautista said that in the first of two raids, they were able to seize packaging labels and other materials from a 700 square-meter residential compound along Speaker Perez street in Sta. Mesa Heights, Quezon City.

A succeeding raid on a warehouse in Caloocan City resulted in the recovery of the finished products. The items were brought to a bonded warehouse along Sucat Avenue, Parañaque City.

Before the raid, the NBI had to conduct a two-week surveillance and apply for a search warrant from Executive Judge Antonio Eugenio Jr., of Manila Regional Trial Court Branch 24.