Authorities monitoring entry of carnapped vehicles in Zamboanga

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines - The police Regional Highway Patrol Unit (RHPU) said monitoring has been intensified amid the possibility that some of the 34 smuggled luxury vehicles might find its way to the region.

Senior Police Officer 1 Wilfred Ator, spokesman of RHPU and chief of the port monitoring team, said they have a standing directive to intensify the international anti-carnapping and anti-smuggling drive.

Ator said they have been constantly monitoring the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) wharf specially on the inbound and outbound vessels and strictly implementing the Republic Act 6539 known as the Act Preventing and Penalizing Carnapping, specifically section 11 that requires the clearance for the shipment of the vehicle and motor vehicle parts.

The STAR reported about the investigation of the Bureau of Customs (BoC) of at least 34 luxury vehicles which were smuggled into the country through the ports in Mindanao and reportedly found their way to Manila. 

Ator said while the possibility remains slim that some of the smuggled luxury vehicles would find its way in this region, the RHPU has not put its guard down

“We have also to assess, once it is luxury vehicle it is expensive and in Zamboanga peninsula only few has the capacity to acquire such expensive vehicle so most probably the market will be in Cebu and Manila,” Ator said. 

The RHPU officer said if there is a market of carnapped vehicles, the number of smuggling and carnap incidents increase.

“So if there were locally carnapped vehicle, there is possibility the imported vehicles are also coming in so we are intensifying the monitoring,” Ator said.

The RHPU officer said they have tapped intelligence networks with the coordination of the barangay leaders.