Police operations across the Zamboanga Peninsula netted some P17.65 million worth of suspected smuggled cigarettes in separate interdictions Wednesday, Oct. 28, the Police Regional Office 9 (PRO-9) reported.
Police Lt. Col. Shellamie Chang, chief of the PRO 9 Regional Public Information Office, said the anti-smuggling drive yielded a total of 102 master cases and 500 reams of illicit tobacco products, following tightened checkpoint operations and strenghtened coordination with the Bureau of Customs (BOC).
In Zamboanga City, officers from the Zamboanga City Police Station (ZCPS) 13 and the 2nd Zamboanga City Mobile Force Company Seaborne intercepted a white Isuzu Elf closed van along Baliwasan Seaside in Barangay San Jose Gusu at around 1:27 a.m.
Acting on intelligence from the City Drug Enforcement Unit and City Intelligence Unit, police flagged down the vehicle and inspected its cargo after the driver failed to present valid transport documents.
A joint inventory with the BOC revealed 102 master cases of cigarettes valued at P15,717,139.20. The intercepted van was impounded and turned over to the BOC alongside the contraband.
The driver remains in ZCPS 13 custody pending charges for violation of Republic Act No. 12022, or the Anti-Agricultural Economic Sabotage Act.
Later that afternoon at around 2:30 p.m., personnel from the 2nd Zamboanga del Norte Provincial Mobile Force Company recovered another haul during an Oplan Sita operation at the Gatas Border Control Point in Barangay Gatas, Kalawit, Zamboanga del Norte.
The crew of a Bacolod-bound Ceres bus originating from Zamboanga City voluntarily turned over suspicious baggage to officers, stating that unidentified individuals loaded the cargo in Ipil, Zamboanga Sibugay, without disclosing the recipient.
Inspection of the abandoned baggage yielded 500 reams of suspected smuggled cigarettes, with an estimated market value of P1,930,000 based on the BOC Standard Price Index.
The bus and its crew were allowed to proceed after documentation, while the recovered items were placed in police custody pending turnover to the customs bureau.
Police Brig. Gen. Elmer Ragay, PRO-9 director, commended the public and bus operators for reporting suspicious activities, reiterating the regional command’s resolve to curb illegal trade.