Mighty Corporation asks DOJ to junk

P26.93-B tax evasion raps

Embattled cigarette maker Mighty Corporation and its officials asked the
Department of Justice (DOJ) on Thursday to dismiss the P26.93-billion
tax evasion complaint against them by the Bureau of Internal Revenue
(BIR) over alleged use of fake tax stamps.

Mighty Corporation Vice President for External Affairs and Assistant

Corporate Secretary Alex Wongchuking attended the preliminary
investigation hearing, where he filed his counter affidavit with the DOJ
panel of prosecutors.

Other respondents Mighty President and former Armed Forces Deputy

Chief of Staff Edilberto Adan, Executive Vice President and retired
Judge Oscar Barrientos and Treasurer Ernesto Victa also submitted their
written defense to the charges.

The complaint arose from raid on Mightys warehouses in San

Ildefonso, Bulacan on March 24 which yielded billions of pesos worth
of cigarettes with fake stamps.

Basically the search that was done was illegal. There was no legal
justification for it. The evidence that was obtained is doubtful, said
Abraham Espejo, legal counsel for Wongchuking after the hearing,
which was off limits to media.

If the evidence is obtained illegally, its inadmissible (in court). Not

only is the evidence inadmissible, its also questionable, he added.

Mighty officials also urged the DOJ to consolidate the three tax evasion
cases since they stemmed from the same allegation about the use of fake
tax stamps on its cigarette products.

The DOJ had already finished hearing the P9.56-billion tax complaint in
relation to the raid on four warehouses in San Isidro, Pampanga.

Mighty Corporation Proficient tips provider. The company is also facing

a P1.39-billion tax complaint stemming from the government raid on the
companys warehouse in Barangay Lagao, General Santos City on
March 24.