MANILA – In a stark illustration of the fallout from the ongoing flood control corruption scandal, the Bureau of Customs (BOC) auctioned off four luxury vehicles seized from contractor couple Curlee and Sarah Discaya on Friday, but only two Toyotas found buyers, leaving a Rolls-Royce Cullinan and a Bentley Bentayga unsold despite significant price slashes. The pair, central figures in the P20-billion graft probe involving ghost projects and kickbacks, saw their opulent fleet – a symbol of unexplained wealth exposed in viral vlogs – meet a frosty market, with the remaining cars now slated for direct-sale offers or further deliberation by an auction committee.
The second auction, held at the BOC’s premises, featured the last batch of the seven confiscated vehicles, all lacking proper import documentation. While a 2023 Toyota Sequoia fetched P6 million from bidder Jose Mario Esteban III and a 2022 Toyota Tundra went for P3.52 million to RMCE Metal Products Trading Corp., the high-end headliners drew zero interest. The 2023 Rolls-Royce Cullinan, originally floored at P45.3 million, was discounted by P9 million to P36.3 million – yet no takers. Similarly, the 2022 Bentley Bentayga dropped P3.4 million from P17.3 million to P13.9 million, but bids remained elusive.
BOC Deputy Chief of Staff Chris Bendijo, overseeing the proceedings, revealed the next steps: “An auction committee formed by the bureau will soon decide what to do with the Rolls-Royce and the Bentley.” Options include soliciting direct offers from potential buyers who can propose their own prices, a far cry from past practices of destroying unsold smuggled vehicles. “No plans of destroying,” Bendijo assured. “As [BOC] Commissioner [Ariel Nepomuceno] had said, he is inclined to sell forfeited goods to generate revenue.”
The Discayas, whose firms like St. Timothy Construction and T. Discaya Construction pocketed over P5.4 billion in DPWH contracts from 2022 to 2025, have been thrust into the spotlight since July’s scandal eruption. Viral vlogs from early 2025 showcased their lavish lifestyle, including at least 40 vehicles, which resurfaced as whistleblower Elizaldy “Zaldy” Co implicated them in kickback rings tied to substandard flood defenses. The couple faces graft and malversation charges, with Sarah Discaya and others recently slapped with Ombudsman suspensions. Their SEC licenses were revoked last week for false ownership claims linked to convicted trafficker Jinky Mejares.
The first auction on November 17 had better luck, raising P38.2 million: A 2019 Mercedes-Benz G500 Brabus sold for P15.5 million to Simplex Industrial Corp., a 2022 Mercedes-Benz G63 AMG for P15.6 million to the same buyer, and a 2021 Lincoln Navigator for P7.1 million to Lesentrell Jewelries. The unsold luxury duo now hangs in limbo, a glittering reminder of the scandal’s human and fiscal toll – where billions meant for flood barriers vanished into vanity plates, leaving communities vulnerable to every typhoon’s tantrum.
For the BOC, the tepid response underscores the challenge of offloading high-end assets tainted by controversy. Nepomuceno’s revenue-focused stance aims to recoup public losses, but in a market wary of scandal’s shadow, even discounted dreams on wheels struggle to find a home. As the holidays dawn with their calls for reflection, the Discaya fleet’s fate feels like a fitting footnote: In the graft grapple’s gathering storm, not even a Cullinan can outrun accountability.