Smuggling of 6-seater plane foiled in Cebu
Two officials of the Bureau of Customs (BOC) assigned at the Laoag International Airport (LIA) and a Japanese pilot are facing criminal and graft charges for allegedly smuggling a six-seater plane to
Those charged were Rogelio Rabanal and Manuel Rico, acting Customs collector and appraiser, respectively, and Capt. Takeshi Ishida of Topflite Airways Inc. based in
Based on a document obtained by The STAR, the complaint was filed by Edward Baltazar, BOC district collector here, and received by the Office of the Ombudsman for
In his complaint, Baltazar alleged that Rabanal, Rico and Ishida violated provisions of the Tariff and Customs Code of the Philippines (smuggling) for allowing the Japanese pilot to land the Piper Mojave at LIA and depart for Mactan International Airport (MIA) in Cebu without the required documents.
The plane originated from
Rabanal allegedly allowed the plane to leave for
However, when the plane landed in
When informed of the plane’s seizure in
Topflite Airways, the plane’s importer, allegedly settled its obligations at Rabanal’s office but Baltazar allegedly found the assessment, appraisal and collection of Customs duties, taxes and penalties injurious and disadvantageous to the government.
Baltazar said more than P2 million in revenue was allegedly lost in the transaction.
The plane, worth eight million yen, was given a hold order and is currently parked at a Customs warehouse in
Rabanal and Rico could not be contacted for comment.
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