Bureau of Customs seize P400 M worth of smuggled counterfeit items

This is a press statement .

Bureau of Customs Deputy Commissioner for Intelligence Danilo Lim issued an alert order against P 400 Million worth of counterfeit products at the Port of Manila, which he said when distributed to the buying public, may pose health and safety risk.

Lim said his office issued the order against two (2) forty-foot containers consigned to Imax Harbor. In coordination with Atty. Zsae Carrie de Guzman of the bureau’s Intellectual Property Rights Division, they noticed marked discrepancies in the origin and specification of the shipment. Upon closer examination, Lim said the shipments ‘s items were misdeclared.

The “hot containers” which were scheduled for public viewing this Monday, and which originally declared plastic wares and bags revealed the following counterfeit items:

1. 130, 000 capsules of counterfeit Tuseran Forte at 10 mg, 15 mg and 325 mg.
2. 55, 000 pieces of counterfeit cellular phone batteries (Nokia, Sony, Ericson, Motorola and Samsung)
3. 9,000 pieces of counterfeit cellular phone chargers.

Other counterfeit items found in the containers were:

1. 720 pieces of Louis Vuitton bags
2. 180 pieces of Coach bags
3. 10, 000 pieces of Hermes pouch/bags
4. 180 pieces of Chanel bags
5. 810 pieces of Gucci bags
6. 30, 000 pieces of wristwatches

Lim said this is the second biggest catch made by the Bureau’s IPRD and also one of the biggest shipments his office issued an alert order against. It was reported that prior to this, an estimated P 700 Million worth of fake luxury branded items were seized b the customs bureau from an operation it conducted at King’s Plaza Building at Binondo, Manila.

“President Aquino asked us to step up our efforts in the people’s fight against smuggling and corruption inside the bureau. This seizure is a response to that call. There will be more in the coming weeks and months, ” Lim said.

The former Brigadier General who was incarcerated for four years for mounting a military uprising against the previous government’s corruption said that they will not waver in the campaign versus smuggling and corruption.

“On behalf of Commissioner Ruffy Biazon, we will do everything in our power to prevent smuggled products especially those that pose a serious threat to the health of our people from entering our market,” Lim added.

Comm. Biazon has instructed the IPRD and the intelligence group headed by Lim to strengthen the enforcement on border patrol.

“I have assigned my best intelligence agents to help strengthen our common initiative on border patrol enforcement. Pagsusumikapan natin na panatilihing matatag ang mga bakod ng tuwid na daan laban sa mga smuggler at corrupt,” Lim concluded.

The counterfeit items reportedly originated from China via Hongkong