The Senate Committee on Agriculture, Food and Agrarian Reform cited a Chinese national for contempt Wednesday after he was accused of repeatedly lying during a hearing on agricultural smuggling.

Shi Chaoqun, a lessee of a warehouse owned by Vigour Global Logistics Corp. in Kawit, Cavite, was cited in contempt by committee chairperson Senator Francis Pangilinan and placed under Senate custody after denying having any contacts in government who assisted him in facilitating alleged smuggling operations.

Shi, who was arrested by the Bureau of Immigration on 5 December while attempting to leave the country, spoke through an interpreter, claiming he had no knowledge of the origins of the questionable items and suggesting another company using the warehouse also stored products there.

Senators found his statements to be false and evasive, especially regarding his claim that he had no local contacts since arriving in the Philippines in 2017.

“I never had any contact with any government office or agency because I don’t know the language,” Shi told the committee.

Senator Erwin Tulfo moved to cite Shi in contempt, arguing he was “continuously lying before this committee,” and questioning how a Chinese national could conduct business without any contacts.

Pangilinan said reports indicated the warehouse had been converted into a cold storage facility to conceal roughly P100 million worth of frozen meat products lacking proper documentation.

A raid by the Bureau of Customs on 31 May 2024 and a follow-up inspection by the Department of Agriculture on 14 June 2024, uncovered 10 cold storage facilities concealed behind a false wall.

Some of the seized products were found unfit for human consumption by inspection services.

Pangilinan found Shi’s final explanation “unsatisfactory,” prompting the committee to cite him in contempt and transfer his custody from the Bureau of Immigration to the Senate.

In a press briefing following the hearing, Pangilinan said the investigation indicates the involvement of a syndicate based in China collaborating with Filipino officials.

He suggested that the lack of charges filed over hundreds of millions of pesos’ worth of meat and fish seized since 2024 suggests protection from influential individuals.

Pangilinan affirmed the existence of government officials shielding smugglers but declined to name individuals while the investigation continues.