ZAMBOANGA City Police Office (FB)
ZAMBOANGA CITY – Authorities arrested two men and seized a shipment of smuggled cigarettes worth P25 million in an operation in this city on Monday morning.
Police Col. Fidel Fortaleza Jr., chief of the Zamboanga City Police Office (ZCPO), identified the suspects as Vicente Garcia, 33, driver; and Mhadzfar Muharram, 37, helper.
The 2nd Zamboanga City Mobile Force Company arrested the suspects around 7:40 a.m. on R.T. Lim Boulevard, Barangay Baliwasan.
Fortaleza said 2ZCMFC personnel were conducting a checkpoint when they flagged down an enclosed van for inspection.
“A routine inspection revealed the vehicle had no valid documents. The driver displayed evasive behavior, which led to his admission that the vehicle contained boxes of cigarettes,” she said.
The contraband allegedly originated from Sulu province and had just arrived when it was seized. It will be handed over to the Bureau of Customs-Port of Zamboanga for proper disposal. (PNA)