The Bureau of Customs (BOC) recently intercepted P2.5 million worth of misdeclared hypothermia medical devices at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 1.
Schilling Florian, a passenger of flight TG 620 that flew in from Bangkok, Thailand, was stopped by customs authorities after x-ray machines showed suspicious images inside his baggage.
Since Florian had failed to declare his baggage in the customs declaration form, BOC authorities had the right to stop him and inspect the baggage, Commissioner Isidro Lapena said in a statement.
The customs appraiser assessed the duties and taxes of the medical devices at P330,338. The items are now held at the BOC-NAIA In-Bond Section after the passenger could not pay the charges.
“We are expecting more apprehensions since passengers normally misdeclare dutiable items,” the customs chief said.
Recently, the bureau installed new x-ray machines at the three terminals of NAIA following President Rodrigo Duterte’s order to do non-intrusive examination of the baggage of arriving tourists and passengers.
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