TACLOBAN CITY, Philippines — Bureau of Customs Commissioner Nicanor Faeldon yesterday led the confiscation of Mighty cigarettes from a container van that was unloaded from M/V Lady Alina that arrived in Tacloban City Port.
Faeldon said he will strongly recommend for the immediate cancellation of import accreditation of Mighty Corporation, with strong evidences the BOC had gathered in a week operation that the firm had “defrauded” the government with billions of pesos in excise taxes.
The apprehension of the shipment yesterday morning was carried out after BOC operatives received an intelligence tip from Manila that a container of Mighty cigarettes, with fake tax stamps, was shipped and due to arrive in Tacloban.
Faeldon, along with local officials of the Bureau of Internal Revenue headed by BIR-8 regional director Teodoro Galicia, personally inspected the container van and led the confiscation of 400 boxes of Mighty cigarettes at the Tacloban City Port.
BOC operatives, using a taggant reader, also found out that, aside from the unpaid P6 million in excise tax, the Mighty cigarettes carried fake BIR stamps.
The seized 400 boxes of Mighty cigarettes are now in custody of the BOC and the BIR in preparation for the filing of criminal charges against the manufacturer for non-payment of excise tax.
Faeldon, after the seizure proceedings at the port, immediately left without holding a press conference with reporters on the matter.
BIR officials, for their part, told The Freeman and The Philippine Star that the owner of Mighty Corporation earlier denied the firm did not pay the P6 million excise tax for the shipment of cigarettes.
Lawyer Tyron Tutaan, Tacloban-based legal counsel of Mighty Corporation, however, showed a temporary restraining order (TRO), signed by Judge Tita Alisoag of the Manila Regional Trial Court, directing BOC to stop the seizure proceedings within 20 days, effective yesterday, March 8.
"We are also waiting for another TRO to be issued anytime today against the BIR for the same proceedings. We know that my client (Mighty Corp.) has been very religious in paying every tax for its products. We have documents to show at the right time," Tutaan said.
But Faeldon, in his brief meeting with reporters at the port, said he warned Mighty Corporation that, based on the evidences BOC has now and on the results of the investigation, the bureau is also questioning the motive of the TRO that the Manila judge issued.
"We are questioning the motive of the TRO. Why not give concerned government agencies the way to investigate, para magkaalaman na, if indeed wala silang ginagawang panloloko ng billions of taxes against the government. They have already cheated the government with billions of excise taxes, and we have a strong case against Mighty Corporation," Faeldon declared.
In its three-month operations, the BOC had seized about P2 billion worth of Mighty cigarettes from eight warehouses in Davao, Faeldon added. (FREEMAN)