MANILA, Philippines — Actor Derek Ramsay is pushing back against suggestions that he was involved in smuggling as government scrutiny of his ultra-rare Porsche 918 Spyder expands from an alleged fake-license-plate controversy to questions about how the multimillion-peso hypercar was declared when it entered the Philippines.
“I’m not a smuggler,” Ramsay maintained as he addressed the latest allegations surrounding the vehicle, saying he is prepared to cooperate with the Bureau of Customs (BOC) just as he did with the Land Transportation Office (LTO).
The controversy has rapidly escalated from what initially appeared to be a traffic and registration issue into a potentially far more serious customs investigation.
From an Alleged Fake Plate to a Customs Investigation
The Porsche 918 Spyder first attracted government attention after it was seen using a plate different from the one registered to the vehicle.
Ramsay has said he was not driving the car at the time.
According to Ramsay, businessman Anthony Jude “AJ” Violago had borrowed the Porsche while the actor was in Vietnam. Ramsay said Violago placed a vanity-style plate carrying his initials on the vehicle.
Violago subsequently apologized, while Ramsay voluntarily brought the Porsche to the LTO as authorities investigated the plate issue. Philstar earlier reported that Ramsay said all his vehicles have legitimate plates and that he was willing to appear before regulators and cooperate with the investigation.
The Philippine Star later reported that Ramsay accepted Violago’s apology over the incident.
But the surrender of the vehicle reportedly triggered another layer of scrutiny.
Customs Records Raise Questions Over Porsche’s Declaration
Reports say the LTO coordinated with the Bureau of Customs to examine the Porsche’s importation records.
According to Bilyonaryo, records reviewed during the inquiry allegedly showed a significant discrepancy: a Customs import entry reportedly described the vehicle as a Porsche Boxster, while another Certificate of Payment associated with the entry identified a Porsche 918 Spyder.
LTO records reportedly link the same vehicle identification number to the 918 Spyder registered under Ramsay’s name.
That distinction could be financially significant.
A Porsche Boxster is an entry-level sports car within Porsche’s range, while the 918 Spyder was an extremely limited-production hybrid hypercar carrying an original US sticker price of roughly $845,000 before options.
Only 918 examples of the Porsche 918 Spyder were produced, making the model one of Porsche’s most collectible modern vehicles.
The Customs Intelligence and Investigation Service reportedly said the discrepancy may indicate possible misdeclaration and warrants further investigation under the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act.
That wording matters: at this stage, the issue remains under investigation and is not by itself proof that Ramsay committed customs fraud or smuggling.
BOC Chief Says Government May Have Lost Tens of Millions in Taxes
The potential tax difference is now at the center of the controversy.
BOC Commissioner Ariel Nepomuceno was quoted in reports as saying the vehicle was allegedly declared at a value of around P6 million to P10 million, resulting in duties and taxes of approximately P1.8 million.
Nepomuceno said the government should potentially have collected more than P30 million to P35 million, depending on the correct valuation and assessment of the vehicle.
If investigators ultimately determine that the import documents deliberately understated or falsely described the vehicle, the case could involve possible violations of the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act.
Customs rules allow authorities to investigate imported vehicles for false declarations, misdeclaration, unpaid duties and taxes, and fraudulent documentation. In previous unrelated cases, the BOC has seized luxury vehicles where investigators established serious discrepancies between declared cargo and the vehicles actually imported.
However, authorities still have to determine who prepared or submitted the Porsche’s original import documents, when the transaction occurred, whether duties were actually deficient, and whether Ramsay had any involvement in that process.
Ramsay: ‘I’m Willing to Cooperate’
Ramsay has rejected attempts to portray the Customs inquiry as proof that he personally smuggled the vehicle.
He said he is willing to answer questions from Customs and stressed that the Porsche is registered under his name.
Speaking about the new BOC issue, Ramsay said he was prepared to cooperate and respond to whatever authorities wanted to ask him.
His position is essentially that he owns the vehicle legally and has nothing to hide while authorities trace its importation history.
The actor has also described the 918 Spyder as both a dream car and an investment—a characterization that reflects the model’s extraordinary rarity in the global collector-car market.
Two Separate Issues Are Now Being Investigated
The Porsche controversy should be separated into two distinct questions.
The first involves the license plate allegedly used while Violago was driving the car. Ramsay says he was overseas at the time and had nothing to do with the replacement plate.
The second—and potentially much more consequential—issue involves the vehicle’s original Customs declaration and taxes.
Those questions are now being examined by different government authorities.
The LTO previously placed the Porsche under alarm status during its fake-plate investigation, while Ramsay later voluntarily turned over the vehicle and cooperated with officials.
The Customs review now goes further back, focusing on how the 918 Spyder originally entered the country and whether the correct model, value, taxes and duties appeared in its import records.
What Investigators Still Need to Establish
The crucial unresolved issue is responsibility.
Even if Customs confirms that the Porsche was misdeclared, investigators would still need to determine who made the declaration, which importer or broker handled the shipment, whether the discrepancy was intentional, and whether the current registered owner had knowledge of or participated in any irregularity.
That means describing Ramsay as having committed smuggling would be premature based on the information publicly available so far.
For now, the established facts are narrower: the Porsche is linked to Ramsay as its registered owner, authorities are reviewing apparent inconsistencies in its documentation, and Ramsay says he will cooperate while categorically rejecting the label of “smuggler.”
What began with an unusual plate on one of the rarest cars on Philippine roads has therefore become something much bigger.
And the most important document in the investigation may no longer be the license plate at all—it could be the paperwork that followed the Porsche into the country.
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