Customs broker Mark Taguba revealed to the House Committee on Justice the alleged practice of paying bribes to some customs offices to facilitate the release of shipments from abroad.
During the hearing of the House Committee on Dangerous Drugs on Monday morning, Taguba said, he would pay bribes totalling about P 27,000 for each container.
He enumerated the amount of grease money that he supposedly gives to different BOC offices through several agents and representatives:
P 2,000 for the Intelligence Group
P 3,000 for the port collector
P 500 for Customs and Intelligence and Investigation Service (CIIS) Director
P 500 for CIIS District Collector
P 500 for Enforcement and Security Service (ESS)
P 1,000 for x-ray
P 200 for Piers and Inspection Division (PID)
P 500 for FED
P 10,000 for Import Assessment Service (IAS)
P 7,500 for the 'section'
Taguba said he would also pay P 7,500 for 'trucking.'
Taguba added the amount of P 40,000 would be paid for taxes.
"Iba't ibang tao ang kumukulekta. Nagte-text sila sa akin kung saang lugar ang bayaran (different individuals collect the money. They send me text messages to tell me where the payment will be made)," he testified during the hearing.
The bribe money would allegedly end up in the offices of the following Customs officials:
– Deputy Commissioner Teddy Raval
– Intelligence Officer Teodoro Sagaral
– District Collector Vincent Marovilla
– a certain Major Gutierrez, who already died
– Director Niel Estrella
– a certain Jayson
– a certain Maita
Some of the accused denied the allegation during the same hearing.
Taguba had facilitated the release of the container imported by EMT Trading that supposedly had the illegal drugs worth P 6.4 billion.
He denied the containers contained shabu.
He also said the shipment was released from BOC on May 24, 2017.
He wondered why reports said the container was searched during a raid supposedly on May 23 when there was no container yet in the warehouse in Valenzuela City at that time.