The Bureau of Customs (BOC) is in the custody of 2 Japanese men arrested at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Tuesday night for entering the country and failing to declare nearly P45 million in Japanese currency.
A 46-year-old man who, according to authorities, pretended to be a policeman to pick up the foreigners was also arrested.
The BOC identified the suspects as Yuzuru Marumo and Masayuki Aoyagi.
They were caught smuggling 100.6 million Japanese yen or P44.8 million in luggage.
According to Customs assistant commissioner Jet Maronilla, spokesperson of the bureau, the BOC received information from Interpol that a Japanese was carrying a large amount of foreign currency.
Flights from Japan were monitored for nearly three weeks until it was confirmed that the suspects would arrive on Feb. 1 at NAIA Terminal 2.
Customs said they saw the money when the Japanese hand-carried luggage was scanned.
They even gave the Japanese a chance to say if they would declare any money, but they said none, so they were arrested.
“Di pa naman natin alam kung saan niya gagamitin, pero the mere fact na hindi niya dineclare — ilang beses siyang tinanong at hindi nila dineclare— of course, there’s doubts to the legality of its use potentially kung saan gagamitin nila. Kaya talagang dapat i-subject for investigation,” said Maronilla.
According to the law, those entering the Philippines must declare if they are carrying foreign currency worth more than $ 10,000 or half a million pesos.
According to Maronilla, it is common for people from Hong Kong or China to be involved in such cases in the past and rarely from Japan.
The Japanese nationals, who are currently in the custody of the Bureau of Customs, are facing charges of illegal importation.
The investigation of the case has been handed over to the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC), determining where the money came from and where it could be used.
2 Japanese men with 100 million yen in cash arrested at NAIA
They have been charged with illegal importation and face detention, deportation, or blacklisting upon return to the Philippines.
Meanwhile, six men were brought to the precinct of the PNP Aviation Security Unit (AVSEU) National Capital Region (NCR) in NAIA. The men were supposed to pick up the Japanese.
According to the BOC report, the men identified themselves as members of the PNP Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) and boarded the Japanese in 2 black vehicles, but were also returned to the authorities.
AVSEU NCR chief Police Col. Cesar Gerente, there was a commotion over the group’s arrest.
He said the police stopped two vehicles at their vehicle screening checkpoint for illegal use of blinkers and sirens.
After verification at the precinct, the five men were sent home, and the one who identified himself as a police officer was detained.
Police Lt Col Mon Sawan of the PNP CIDG confirmed that the man was not their personnel.
The man was charged with usurpation of authority and violation of the anti-siren and blinker law.
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