Former Customs official, bogus broker arrested for extortion
Credit to Author: The Manila Times| Date: Thu, 23 May 2019 10:01:55 +0000
A former top official of the Bureau of Customs (BoC) and an alleged bogus customs broker were arrested by joint operatives of the Customs Intelligence Group (CIG) and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) in an entrapment operation for alleged extortion.
Lawyer Robert Geotina and Nancy Nuguid were arrested in a restaurant along Tomas Morato Ave. in Quezon City following a complaint filed by an importer that they were allegedly asking for P.5 million in exchange for the release of the shipment consigned to Shacka Guns and Ammo.
Geotina served as customs deputy commissioner for administration in 2005 under former president-turned-Speaker Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.
Geotina went into law practice after retiring this year from the Department of Finance. His father, Rolando Geotina, was Customs commissioner in 1961 and from 1968-1975.
Geotina, who is detained at the NBI detention facility, denied the allegation in a phone interview with The Manila Times on Thursday.
“I was there as a lawyer,” Geotina told The Times, adding that his services as a legal counsel was sought by the importer through Nuguid to help facilitate the release Shacka’s importation of gun parts and accessories from South Korea worth some P800,000.
An alert was raised on the shipment because its declared value was only P200,000 or a difference of P600,000.
Under customs laws, the importer is penalized if there is a difference of more than 30 percent between the actual and declared value of his or her shipment.
Geotina said the importer wanted to circumvent the P3-million fine imposed on its shipment and insisted on spending only P500,000 to facilitate the release of the cargo.
“It was at that point that the arrest was made. I was surprised and felt betrayed,” he said.
He disclosed that two similar shipments were released previously on separate occasions but their value was small. WILLIAM B. DEPASUPIL
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