MULING nalantad ang talamak na katiwalian at korupsyon sa Land Transportation Office nang magawang maparehistro ang dalawang hinihinalang smuggled luxury car na nagkakahalaga ng P165 million ang bawat isa.

Kinumpirma ng Bureau of Customs na naparehistro ang dalawang unit ng 2023 Bugatti Chiron kahit na walang import documents. “We want to know who allowed this to happen,” ani BOC-CIIS Director Verne Enciso.

Kinilala ang dalawang registered owner ng 2023 model sports car—isang asul (with plate number NIM 5448) at isang pula (with plate number NIM 5450)—na nakapangalan kina Menguin Zhu at Thu Thrang Nguyen.

Nabatid na inaalam pa ng Aduana ang bansang pinagmulan ng dalawang kotse at kung ito ba ay mga brand new or secondhand nang inangkat ang mga ito.

Sinabi pa ni BOC-CIIS Director Verne Enciso, hiniling na nila sa Land Transportation Office (LTO) na magsagawa ng imbestigasyon kung paano naparehistro ang mga kotse nang walang tamang dokumento at halos magkasunod pa ang bilang ng kanilang plaka.

“Of course, we want to get to the bottom of this. It’s not just about having the sports car in our possession now since it entered the country illegally, but it’s also about understanding how this happened and how such a car was registered despite having no import documents. We want to know who allowed this to happen,” dagdag pa opisyal ng Aduana.

Nabatid na napilitang ng isurender ng may-ari ng pulang Bugatti Chiron sports car sa Bureau of Customs (BOC)-Intelligence and Investigation Service-Manila International Container Port (CIIS-MICP), ang pinaghahanap na mamahaling kotse noong February 9, 2024.

Habang pinaghahanap pa ang asul na Bugatti Chiron na nakatawag pansin sa mga netizen matapos na makitang pagala-gala sa Pasay, Pasig, Muntinlupa, at Cavite.

Pinapurihan naman ni Customs Commissioner Bien Rubio ang mabilis na resulta sa isinagawang hot pursuit operation sa dalawang hot cars without import documents.

“This shows what we can achieve more by working with the public. This is a big win for the Bureau as we are working toward curbing smuggling of all kinds and making sure our borders are secured from nefarious smuggling activities,” ani Comm. Rubio.

Ayon kay Deputy Commissioner for Intelligence Group Juvymax Uy, ang red Bugatti ay isinuko sa joint BOC team mula sa isang bahay sa Ayala Alabang Village sa Muntinlupa City.

“Our intelligence information is that the red Bugatti had been stored in a house in Alabang. Since we shared the information about the two cars publicly, it got harder for the owners to drive these anywhere,” ani BOC chief Intel Officer Juvy Max, isang dating military.

“Our job is not yet done. The blue Bugatti is still out there. We will find it in due time,” dagdag pa ng opisyal.

(JESSE KABEL RUIZ)