The Bureau of Customs (BOC) is currently on the lookout for two smuggled Bugatti Chiron super sports cars valued at an astonishing P330 million.
These 2023 model sports cars, one blue (with plate number NIM 5448) and one red (with plate number NIM 5450), have been frequently spotted in Muntinlupa, Pasig, Pasay, and Cavite.
However, the BOC said that these high-end vehicles, each with a value of P165 million, were illicitly brought into the country without the required importation documentation.
These cars are registered to two Chinese nationals and were openly advertised on online market and social media platforms, according to the BOC.
The BOC has already issued a Warrant of Seizure and Detention for the two vehicles.
“The agency received information last November 2023 about the entry of these vehicles without going through regular customs clearance,” BOC Deputy Commissioner for Customs Intelligence Group Juvymax Uy said.
Uy added that the Customs Intelligence and Investigation Service-Manila International Container Port (CIIS-MICP) conducted a case build-up upon receiving the information.
“On Nov. 28, 2023, our Management Information System Technical Group (MISTG) confirmed that the motor vehicles do not have any import documents,” Uy said.
BOC-CIIS Director Verne Enciso is now appealing to the public to provide information about the vehicles.
“We ask the public to give us any information about these vehicles if they see them. They can reach out to the BOC’s Intelligence Group or through the BOC Cares portal to report any sightings,” he said.
Cash rewards await the informers or whistleblowers, equivalent to 20 percent of the actual revenue collected, the bureau said.
Last November, Senator Raffy Tulfo raised concerns about the alleged failure to pay Customs duties and taxes by the owner of two high-end vehicles.
During the plenary debates for the 2024 proposed budget of the BOC, Tulfo inquired with Senator Sonny Angara, the budget sponsor, about the BOC's records regarding the entry of two vehicles that he had recently seen on social media.
Tulfo claimed that one of the cars was located in Pasay City, while the other was in the Ortigas area.
He asserted that based on the market value of the vehicles, the owner should have paid government taxes amounting to P6 million.