The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) based here recently seized what could be illegal logs and arrested five people who were allegedly responsible of the contraband’s transportation.

 PCG said in its report that based on in information it received from unnamed source that a motorized banca was carrying illegal forest products.

 And the information proved to be true as SN1 Ralph Barajan, SN2 Wilfredo Jubac III, SN2 Dionevic Flores and SN2 Gian Carl Buenaobra along with Philippine Navy and Philippine Army were able to intercept the said boat while conducting seaborne patrol between Balicasag island and Panglao town.

 “The said motorized banca has no documents onboard and further discovered 81 pieces of magkono lumber with different sizes and dimensions which prompted us to arrest the five crewmen on board” and impounded the boat.

 PCG arrested the crewmen identified as Lolito Tiu, 42, widower, the boat captain; Jundel Dizon, 24, single; Jade Villamor, 28, married; Jerryboy Flores, 22, single; and Rulie Orcullo, 30, single.

 The PCG said that the arrested persons could be violating section 77 of Presidential Decree Number 705 (Revised Forestry Code of the Philippines) as amended by Republic Act 7161 or the Forestry Reform Code of the Philippines states “that any person who shall cut, gather, collect, removed timber or other forest products from any forest land, or timber from alienable or disposable public land, or from private land, without any authority, or possess timber or other forest products without the legal documents as required under existing forest laws and regulations, shall be punished with the penalties imposed under Articles 309 and 310 of the Revised Penal Code.”

 The contraband loaded to the blue-white boat included 81 pieces of Makono lumber with total volume of 1,836.98 board feet; one bolo and one chisel, PCG said.

 The boat and the hot cargo were impounded at the Department of Environment and Natural resources (DENR) compound in Cortes town, where the inventory took place.

 The crew were turned over to Panglao police authorities while appropriate charges are to be filed shortly, PCG said. (rvo)