Any news of vehicles being smuggled into the country is never a good one. And the sight of the same being squashed by a bulldozer is even worse. But we might see that yet again as the Bureau of Customs has descended upon an unnamed dealership in Pasig that sells high-end cars with reportedly dodgy documents.

Last July 4, a team of BOC agents raided the showroom in Barangay Ugong after intelligence reports suggested that several of its cars had questionable paperwork—likely related to the manner they were brought into the country. Out of the 197 vehicles on the lot, 87 were found to have improper or incomplete records.

According to Section 224 of Republic Act No. 10863 (Customs Modernization and Tariff Act), the company operating the dealership must submit evidence of payment of correct duties and taxes due from its imported goods within 15 days of the implementation of the Letter of Authority. Failure to do so may result in the seizure of the vehicles in question.

While the showroom is currently off limits, the BOC did not close off the entire compound so that other establishments within the area could continue operating.