October 23, 2025 | 12:12pm
MANILA, Philippines — The Bureau of Customs plans to auction 13 luxury cars linked to contractor couple Curlee and Sarah Discaya by mid-November, expecting to generate at least P200 million in revenue.
Assistant Commissioner Vincent Philip Maronilla said on Wednesday, October 22, that the Discayas failed to provide sufficient proof that the cars were legally imported and the required taxes were properly paid.
“Those we issued warrants of seizure and detention for are already up for forfeiture, so they will go through the auction process by November 15,” he said in Filipino an ambush interview.
Maronilla added that the Discayas were given enough chances to submit the required documents, but only turned in the same ones, which were deemed “unsatisfactory.”
Of the 13 cars, seven lacked importation documents and certificates of payment, while six had questionable or fraudulent certificates. These vehicles include:
- Toyota Tundra
- Toyota Sequoia
- Mercedes Benz AMG SUV
- Mercedes-Benz G 500
- Lincoln Navigator 2021
- Bentley Bentayga
- Lincoln Navigator 2024
- GMC Yukon Denali
- Cadillac Escalade 2021
- Maserati Levante Modena
- GMC Yukon Denali
- Cadillac Escalade ESV
- Rolls Royce Cullinan.
In the meantime, the agency is only waiting for the Department of Finance’s approval to proceed with the auction of the seized cars belonging to the Discayas, BOC Deputy Chief of Staff Chris Noel Bendijo said in a dzMM interview.
17 more vehicles under review
Beyond the 13 cars set for auction, 17 more luxury vehicles owned by the Discayas remain under government probe, with the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) checking for inconsistencies in their tax declarations, he added.
The agency projects at least P200 million in revenue from the 13 cars based on landed costs. For the remaining 17, he said the BIR has yet to determine the value should they also be auctioned.
Bendijo said all proceeds from the auction will go to the national treasury, as per a Customs memorandum order from 2020, which mandates that auction funds be treated as forfeiture funds and reverted to the national treasury.
“[D]ito mapupunta ang lahat ng pondong magmumula sa auction at eventually ito naman din po ay magiging bahagi ng national treasury. Ibabalik natin to sa kaban ng bayan,” he said. (All funds raised from the auction will go here and will eventually become part of the national treasury. We’re returning it to the people’s coffers.)
Safe for buyers. Maronilla said in an ambush interview on Wednesday that the auction will comply with all legal procedures and that buyers of the luxury cars will not be subject to investigation.
Hearings on the forfeited luxury cars have been ongoing since October 9. Bendijo said the Discayas have until Thursday, October 23, to file their position paper before the BOC issues its final ruling.
The contractor couple, who owns nine construction firms, has been under intense scrutiny for their alleged role in the corruption scandal involving anomalous flood control projects and a supposed kickback scheme linked to lawmakers.
Investigation into the couple’s properties first began in September when old interviews showing the Discayas flaunting their wealth and over 40 luxury cars resurfaced online, following a post by Pasig Mayor Vico Sotto, their opponent in the 2025 midterm elections. — with reports from the Philippine News Agency.