The Bureau of Customs (BOC) is considering the auction of luxury vehicles linked to government contractors Pacifico “Curlee” II and Cezarah “Sarah” Discaya after initial checks suggested that proper duties and taxes were not paid.
Atty. Chris Noel Bendijo, deputy chief of staff of BOC Commissioner Ariel Nepomuceno, revealed that out of the 28 cars seized from the couple’s company compound in Pasig, more than ten had no supporting documents to prove tax compliance.
“Lagpas 10 ’yung ating nakita so far na hindi nakita ’yung kaukulang dokumento for Customs duties and taxes,” Bendijo said in an interview, adding that the evidence strengthens suspicions of irregular importation.
He explained that under the law, assets can be seized if the difference between required and actual tax payments exceeds 20 percent. “Kung talagang walang binayarang buwis, pwede nang hilahin ng pamahalaan at i-subject sa mga either forfeiture, destruction, condemnation, or pwede ring i-auction,” he said. The commissioner, he added, is inclined to generate revenue from the cars to help reduce government borrowing.
Among the vehicles in question are a Jaguar F-Pace, Porsche Cayenne, Cadillac Escalade, GMC Yukon Denali, BMW X5, and several Mercedes Benz and Land Rover models.
The Discayas, now under congressional investigation after their firms cornered ₱31 billion worth of flood control projects, maintain that the cars were acquired legitimately. Their lawyer, Atty. Cornelio Samaniego III, stressed: “’Yung mga sasakyan na nabanggit…dumaan sa tamang proseso. Binili po sa mga legitimate car dealers. Legal po yan…wala po kaming ilegal na tinatago.”
