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A manager of the FedEx Airfreight Service who authorized the reshipment
of a questionable cargo of imported cell phones has put himself in a
lot of trouble when he snubbed the investigation called by the
Presidential Anti-Smuggling Group (PASG) on the matter.
The PASG head, Undersecretary Antonio Villar
Jr., said on Sunday that they would give Sam Bautista, FedEx
Clearance Operations Manager, another chance to explain his side.
“If he continues to evade the investigation,
it only shows that he is hiding something,” Villar said.
The investigation was conducted last Saturday at
the PASG’s satellite office at the Subic Bay Freeport. The
hot cell phones in 15 big freight boxes arrived in Subic from Hong
Kong early last week. The shipment was consigned to a certain
Noel Moog of Pilar, Bataan.
But Bureau of Customs and PASG authorities were
alerted by an informant who said that the shipment lacked the
corresponding documentation to prove its legality.
Bautista actually authorized its immediate
reshipment to its point of origin before the bureau and the PASG
could conduct an investigation.
“The shipment was authorized by Mr. Bautista
for reshipment in clear violation of the existing rules and
regulations. He did not properly coordinate with or notify the
concerned officials of Customs and PASG,” Benny Kho, PASG-Task
Force Subic acting deputy director, said.
The PASG task force and Customs officials were
surprised by Bautista’s move, hinting of a possible involvement of
FedEx in smuggling.
-- William B. Depasupil
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