January 30, 2017, Monday – the Bureau of Customs seized electronic gadgets being sold by Kimstore worth millions of pesos on Lakandula Street, Tondo, Manila, including laptops, smartphones, cameras, audio accessories and peripherals.
According to the BOC, the items being sold by the online retailer is said to be ‘smuggled.’ Kimstore failed to provide when one of the staff was asked for documents for the imported items.
Customs Intelligence and Investigation Service (CIIS) Director Neil L. Estrella mentioned that the case is ‘a top form of smuggling‘ through ‘misdeclaration schemes… to defraud and avoid paying correct duties and taxes to the government.’
The initial report by Intelligence Officer Joel Pinawin reveals a Filipino-Chinese businessman person named ‘Francis’ as the owner of Kimstore.
But Pinawin added, “We are still validating some intelligence reports, and we will fully identify the real owners of Kim Store in the next few days”.
Best be careful online stores.
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