ABOUT 18,811 illicit vape products with P36.5 million worth of tax total deficiency were seized in a Bulacan raid, the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) said.
In a statement on Wednesday, the BIR said it raided an “online-enabled” illicit vape disguising as a legitimate business and seized 18,811 vape products and counterfeit tax stamps in Guiguinto on May 30.
The basic excise tax liability from the nabbed products is estimated at ₱3.49 million.
“To put the scale of the haul into perspective — if we’re being conservative — assuming one disposable vape lasts an average user one week, this means that the 18,811 seized units could supply over 4,700 underage users for a month, assuming each one vapes daily,” BIR Commissioner Romeo Lumagui Jr. said.
The BIR said it raided two establishments, a vape lounge operating as a front for underground vape distribution and a makeshift warehouse located in a residential house.
It found 4,789 salt nicotine units and 14,022 conventional vape products, along with fake internal revenue excise stamps and counterfeit disposable vapes. — Aubrey Rose A. Inosante
