Manila Bulletin
Philippines
National
War vs smugglers declared as PNP foils delivery of P143M 'hot' cigarettes
Philippines
National
War vs smugglers declared as PNP foils delivery of P143M 'hot' cigarettes
War vs smugglers declared as PNP foils delivery of P143M 'hot' cigarettes
Cops reject bribery try amounting to P5 million, says top cop
Published Dec 19, 2025 02:36 pm
Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Jonvic Remulla middle, Philippine National Police (PNP) Acting Chief Police Lt. Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. (second from right), and officials of the PNP–Highway Patrol Group (HPG) and the Bureau of Customs report the seizure of suspected undocumented and smuggled cigarettes worth an estimated P143 million during a press briefing at Camp Crame in Quezon City on December 19, 2025. The smuggled cigarettes, loaded in two trailer trucks, were intercepted on December 17 along G. Araneta Avenue in Quezon City by the PNP-HPG during anti-carnapping and traffic law enforcement operations. (Santi San Juan)
The national government declared on Friday, Dec. 19, a war against smugglers after the Philippine National Police (PNP) confiscated around P143 million worth of allegedly smuggled cigarettes during a joint law enforcement operation with the Bureau of Customs (BOC).
In a press briefing at Camp Crame in Quezon City, acting PNP Chief Police Lt. Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. said the operation, led by the Highway Patrol Group (HPG), also uncovered bribery after three individuals offered P5 million to the operatives, who rejected the money.
“The PNP is announcing the confiscation of smuggled cigarettes, led by the Highway Patrol Group, amounting to around P143 million, more or less, and still being counted,” he said.
“During the course of the investigation and documentation for filing of appropriate cases, three individuals came forward to offer a bribe. This was not just an attempt but actual bribery,” he added.
Police Brig. Gen. Hansel Marantan, PNP-HPG director, said the seized cigarettes originated from Bauan, Batangas and were loaded into two trailer trucks bound for Valenzuela City when they were flagged by HPG personnel, who were initially conducting anti-carnapping operations and traffic management along G. Araneta Avenue in Quezon City on Dec. 17.
Three truck drivers were brought to the HPG Central Luzon headquarters in Pampanga for the initial processing. That was the time when three more suspects, who are identified as owners of the trucks, arrived at the HPG Central Luzon headquarters to allegedly offer a bribe to the operatives.
A sting operation was immediately conducted by the PNP-HPG officers which led to the seizure of the money and the arrest of the truck owners. All in all, six suspects have been placed under police custody and they are set to face criminal charges, according to Nartatez.
Following the operation, Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Jonvic Remulla declared a war against smugglers which aims to uncover and arrest the masterminds behind the smuggling of cigarettes into the country within the next six months.
“This effort is very significant because the losses of taxes due to smuggling are now amounting to maybe P25 billion a year, the loss of the income to the government. So we will begin an extensive anti-smuggling campaign and we expect to get to the bottom of the entire syndicate within the next six months,” Remulla said.
Remulla noted that these losses directly affect healthcare funding for Filipinos, particularly the poorest sectors.
“These excise taxes are used to fund healthcare for Filipinos. Losing P25 billion is significant because it impacts the poorest of the poor. The government aims to implement aggressive zero balance billing in all Department of Health (DOH) hospitals by 2026, and this loss of revenue would greatly affect our budget so we will go after all smugglers,” he said.
Remulla also lauded the cops for rejecting the bribe by the truck owners.
“This is part of an organized crime effort trying to bribe the PNP into allowing this kind of trade. We do not allow this, we do not condone this, we are not part of this. You can expect a more vigorous campaign against smugglers and against economic saboteurs in this country,” he added.
Meanwhile, Nartatez said the HPG is now coordinating with the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) and BOC to identify the masterminds behind the illegal cargoes.
“This will be an ongoing investigation. We will establish connections not only in Metro Manila but across the three major islands of Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. We will create these links so that we can study how these items are transported, how they arrive here, who the cohorts are, and who the masterminds behind them are,” he said.