MANILA, Philippines — A Manila court has sentenced a businesswoman to up to 20 years in prison and fined ₱1 million for facilitating the illegal importation of hazardous waste from Canada in 2013, the Department of Justice (DOJ) said.
The Manila City Regional Trial Court (RTC) found the owner of Chronic Plastics guilty of aiding and facilitating the entry of hazardous waste concealed in 10 container vans that arrived at the Port of Manila on June 23, 2013.
In its Aug. 26, 2026 decision, the court sentenced the businesswoman to 12 years and one day to 20 years in prison and imposed a ₱1-million fine for violating Republic Act (RA) 6969, or the Toxic Substances and Hazardous and Nuclear Wastes Control Act of 1990.
The shipment was declared as compressed plastic scrap but was found to contain mixed, unsorted and heterogeneous plastic materials. The shipment allegedly entered the country without the required clearance from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).
Evidence presented during the trial revealed discrepancies between the shipment’s declared contents and the materials discovered during inspection.
The court, however, acquitted two Customs brokers charged alongside the businesswoman, ruling that the prosecution failed to prove their guilt beyond reasonable doubt. Evidence showed involvement was limited to facilitating the shipment’s release, with insufficient proof that they knew of or participated in loading the prohibited materials.
