Second-hand goods or ukay-ukay worth P11 million were seized when agents of the National Bureau of Investigation in Central Visayas (NBI-7) raided a warehouse in barangay Paknaan, Mandaue City yesterday afternoon.
The raid was based on a search warrant issued by Municipal Trial Court in Cities (MTCC) Judge Rogelio Lucmayon.
Among the items seized were used clothing, shoes and bags.
The origin of the second-hand goods was not immediately known.
Augusto Isidoro, acting NBI-7 assistant regional director, said the business was owned by Cecil Belocura.
Jonghoi Goo, a Korean national, was invited by the NBI-7 for questioning to check if he was involved in the business and his relationship to the alleged owner.
Belocura refused to comment on the matter while Goo denied he was the woman’s business partner.
Goo said he just helped Belocura deliver the used clothing and shoes to various customers in Metro Cebu.
The sale of second-hand imported products is illegal based on Republic Act 4653.
The law seeks to safeguard the health of the people and maintain the nation’s dignity by declaring it a national policy to prohibit the commercial importation of used clothing.
“We don’t want to be treated as a dumping place for second-hand goods. It’s also potentially dangerous to public health to wear second-hand items,” said the NBI official, since the clothing could have been worn by people with infectious diseases or the clothing was handled under unsanitary conditions.