The government鈥檚 anti-corruption body is looking into the possibility that听the suspected gold and jewelry smugglers caught at the Ninoy Aquino International听Airport (NAIA) were financing terrorist groups or activities.
Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC) Commissioner Greco Belgica听accused what he named as听the 鈥淢imbalawang spouses鈥� of being involved in a syndicate that听smuggles drugs and jewelry into the country through NAIA Terminal听3.
PACC Commissioner Greco Belgica presents to the media a photo of the seized gold and jewelry worth more or less P6 million from suspected smugglers. whom he called 鈥淢imbalawang spouses鈥�, apprehended at NAIA Terminal 3. (黑料社/Julius N. Leonen)
According to Belgica, the syndicate where the Mimbalawang spouses were involved was only one of听eight groups reportedly engaged in smuggling activities at the airport.
鈥淚n our estimates, they raised P10 billion from their smuggling activities in an average听used to finance terrorist activities. Probably, they have links, insurgents. Basta ito po听iyan. The rest will be for further investigation of the PACC,鈥� Belgica told reporters in a听press conference on Thursday.
鈥淭he fundraising activity was for illegal activities. They are part of a group that raises听funds for certain groups. They could be terrorists, they could be insurgents,鈥� Belgica听claimed, adding that the information was from an 鈥淎1 source鈥�.
In addition, Belgica said that from 2014 to 2017, the couple traveled 133 times to听Dubai and Thailand.
The Mimbalawang spouses were apprehended at NAIA Terminal 3 for smuggling听1.9 kilograms of assorted pieces of gold jewelry valued at more or less P6听million, according to Belgica.
A Customs flight supervisor, identified as Lomodot Macabando, was also听collared along with the couple after he was linked to the alleged smuggling听attempt.
Belgica presented to the media a video showing an unidentified man passing to听Macabando a black clutch bag, which was suspected to have contained听smuggled jewelry, at NAIA Terminal 3鈥檚 conveyor area.
According to Belgica, this might have been intended to avoid the payment of听proper duties and taxes.
But the couple and Macabando were released from detention by a Pasay City听prosecutor for them to undergo further investigation.
The PACC official said the arrested couple were parents of Department of Justice听Assistant Secretary Moslemen Macarambon Jr.鈥檚 daughter-in-law.听
READ:听 Macarambon says he asked BOC once to re-compute taxes for daughter-in-law
Macarambon was tagged in the couple鈥檚 alleged smuggling activities when Malaca帽ang accused him of 鈥渞egularly been intervening on behalf of suspected听smugglers of gold and other precious jewelry at the Ninoy Aquino International听Airport.鈥�
But the DOJ official asserted he did not do anything wrong.
Macarambon said his daughter-in-law and her family were held by the BOC in December 2017, and was told听 to pay P6-million in taxes for the pieces of jewelry, which had an assessed value of P7 million.
He said he requested a re-computation of the levy for the confiscated items until the tax amount was reduced to P1.38听million.听听听 /kga
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