Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 15) — Another warehouse raid resulted in the confiscation of ₱42 million worth of smuggled rice, this time in Zamboanga City, the Bureau of Customs (BOC) said on Friday.
The BOC-Port of Zamboanga seized 42,180 sacks of rice in Barangay San Jose Gusu after authorities found that the goods were not covered by the requisite sanitary and phytosanitary import clearance from the Bureau of Plant Industry.
It first inspected the facility on May 19 after receiving information that smuggled rice was being stored there.
The BOC then issued an order of forfeiture on Sept. 1 after verification of import documents submitted by the warehouse showed that the subject goods were not covered by the import clearance and were different from what was declared.
According to the bureau, the proof of payment submitted by the warehouse referred to a shipment of “white rice 15% broken,” but the actual seized goods were “Jasmine fragrant rice.”
Customs Commissioner Bienvenido Rubio earlier said they will conduct more warehouse inspections following President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s instruction for them to address hoarding and illegal rice importation – crimes which the government said have contributed to the spike in prices of the commodity.
In late August, the bureau said it raided three warehouses in Bulacan allegedly storing smuggled rice worth a cumulative ₱505 million.
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