A shipment of onions amounting to P3 million was seized by the Bureau of Customs (BOC) at the Manila International Container Port (MICP) due to alleged misdeclaration.
The BOC, in a statement Saturday, May 29, said the importer failed to fully declare what kind of onions were contained in the shipment. Instead of only yellow onions, the shipment was also found to contain red onions.
"The shipment was originally declared as yellow onions but was later discovered to contain 60 percent of red onions which was estimated to have a value of P3 million," the BOC explained.
The shipment came from China and was consigned to a certain Potanion Trading.
A 100-percent physical examination to check the contents of the shipment was conducted on May 26, following an intelligence report, the Customs bureau said.
It was witnessed by members of Customs Intelligence and Investigation Service, Enforcement and Security Service's Customs Anti-illegal Drugs Taskforce, Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA), and Chamber of Customs Brokers Inc. (CCBI).
A warrant of seizure and detention was issued against the shipment for violation of Sections 1113 and 1401 of Republic Act 10863 or the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act (CMTA).