Cops seize P900,000 smuggled cigarettes in Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat

COTABATO CITY – A businesswoman in Cotabato province and a pump boat operator in Sultan Kudarat province were separately arrested for trying to smuggle contraband cigarettes past law enforcers on Thursday, the Police Regional Office (PRO-12) said.

Brig. Gen. Alan Manibog, Police Regional Office (PRO-12) director, said that in Kabacan, Cotabato, a 27-year-old woman was arrested for possession of some P355,240 worth of allegedly smuggled cigarettes during a checkpoint operation at 1 p.m. in Barangay Kilagasan.

READ: Cebu shipping firm: Not under probe for alleged cigarette smuggling

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Police flagged down the Mitsubishi Strada driven by the businesswoman who eluded inspection by operatives of the Highway Patrol Group 12 at Rizal Avenue, Kabacan.

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Manibog said the HPG operatives alerted the police in Barangay Kilagasan about the vehicle.

Upon plain view inspection, the police noticed Berlin brand cigarettes in the pick-up vehicle.

The driver, identified as alias “Bai”, was arrested and informed of her constitutional rights while her male companion, identified as alias “Mamin,” reportedly fled and remains at large.

Meanwhile, in Lebak, Sultan Kudarat, police operatives intercepted a motorized banca carrying 400 reams of suspected smuggled cigarettes worth an estimated P544,000 during a seaborne patrol operation at around 2:20 a.m. on November 12, Thursday.

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Acting on intelligence information about the alleged transport of illicit cigarettes from Datu Blah Sinsuat, Maguindanao del Sur, a joint team led by the Sultan Kudarat Maritime Police Station backed by other police units, conducted a seaborne patrol some seven kilometers off the shoreline of Barangay Tran, Lebak.

The team intercepted a blue motorized banca marked “Totoh Aice 2.” Upon inspection, operatives discovered 400 reams of Fort cigarettes without the required Graphic Health Warning labels, believed to be smuggled.

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The banca operator, identified as alias “Kol Dap,” 40, a fisherman and resident of Kalamansig, Sultan Kudarat, failed to present documents legalizing the possession, sale, or distribution of the cigarettes.

“We will not allow lawless elements to use our sea waters in their illegal activities, we will intensify our maritime patrol and coordination with other marine law enforcers to prevent smuggling of cigarettes and other contraband,” Manibog said. /jpv