via Pauline Requesto
Two persons were arrested by the BOC’s Customs Police Rapid Intervention Group (CPRIG) and the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) on July 19 for trying to recruit employees to work for the bureau allegedly in exchange for money.
Cecilia Lucentales, 62, and Roliveth Cortes, 52, of Pasay City, were nabbed in an entrapment operation at the Alen Building along Gil Puyat Avenue in Pasay City.
Maj. Jaybee Raul Cometa, the CPRIG commander, said customs police and CIDG agents conducted an entrapment operation after they received a complaint from Federico R. Santos who said he was lured by Lucentales to work at the BOC.
The complainant said Lucentales asked for P50,000 from him in exchange for the position of a district collector in the bureau.
“We have checked with the Human Resource Management Division and found out that Lucentales is not a legitimate employee of the bureau,” he said.
The suspects were charging each applicant from P50,000 to P100,000 in exchange of work for the BOC once a certain “Victorino” assumes office as the Commissioner of Customs.
Cometa said the suspects would be charged with violations of the Revised Penal Code Article 315 for estafa and Article 178 for usurpation of authority.
Cometa reminded the public to be always vigilant and cautious.
“Do not believe offers like these because if the bureau has a job opening, we disclose it to the public and there’s no money involved,” Cometa said.
“There’s a regular hiring process, so please be vigilant as these things do not happen anymore in the bureau,” he stressed.
The BOC deploys highly trained CPRIG customs operatives for critical missions and operations. (BOC-PR)
