(Eagle News)–The Bureau of Customs has seized over P4.5 million worth of misdeclared used clothes in Cebu.
The bureau said the “ukay ukay” clothes were contained in 694 bales that had been declared as hotel supplies in the inward foreign manifest.
The shipment, with an overall estimated value of P4,585,000, arrived in the country on Sept. 1 and was consigned to GRR Trading.
“With the successive seizures of previous shipments from the same importer, the container was subjected to x-ray inspection which showed suspicious x-ray images,” the bureau said, noting that criminal charges had been filed against GRR Trading over the “unlawful importation” of various brands of cigarettes with a street value of P234.7 Million.
The Bureau’s Account Management Office has also revoked the importer’s accreditation.
On August 28, Acting District Collector Atty. Charlito Martin R. Mendoza issued a pre-lodgment control order (PLCO) against the shipment, and on Sept. 1, Customs Examiner Jay A. Oyao conducted a physical examination, along with representatives from the Customs Intelligence and Investigation Service, Enforcement and Security Service, X-Ray Inspection Project Team, Philippine Coast Guard, Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency, and Chamber of Customs Brokers, Inc.—Cebu Chapter.
Mendoza issued a warrant of seizure and detention (WSD) against the shipment for violation of Republic Act No. 4653, which prohibits the importation of used clothing “to safeguard the health of the people and maintain the dignity of the nation,” the bureau said.
“This latest seizure of the Port of Cebu is part of the bureau’s continuous campaign to curb smuggling and protect the country’s borders from the entry of prohibited articles of importation,” the bureau added.