The Philippine National Police (PNP) said it has stepped up efforts to curb the movement of undocumented cigarette shipments by sea after a motorized boat loaded with about P6.5 million worth of suspected smuggled tobacco was intercepted off Zamboanga City. PNP Chief Police Gen. Jose Melencio C....
A new United Nations (UN) report has warned that illicit tobacco trade is helping finance non-state armed groups and criminal organizations operating in Mindanao, turning cigarette smuggling from a revenue-loss issue into a broader peace, order, and national security concern. According to the UN...
BACOLOD CITY – The Police Regional Office–Negros Island Region (PRO-NIR) intercepted smuggled cigarettes worth P15 million and apprehended three individuals in Barangay Looc, Dumaguete City, Negros Oriental on Wednesday, Aug. 5. The suspects were identified as Je, 32, driver, and Jo, 22, both...
Bureau of Customs (BOC) Commissioner Ariel F. Nepomuceno has warned the agency’s senior officials against attempts to steal seized smuggled cigarettes, ordering tighter monitoring and stricter inventory accountability. Nepomuceno, through a memorandum dated Aug. 3, told the BOC’s high-ranking...
Police commanders were directed to intensify intelligence monitoring of suspected smuggling routes and destinations as law enforcers try to accomplish more after around P628 million worth of smuggled and counterfeit goods were confiscated last month. And the response was quick as the police’s...
The Philippine National Police has intensified the surveillance operations and strengthened coordination with neighboring countries amid the continuous confiscation of smuggled goods, particularly cigarettes that usually sneaked in the country using the southern backdoor. But PNP chief Gen. Jose...
A police officer based in Zamboanga City and a businessman were arrested in Kalawit, Zamboanga del Norte on Friday, July 31, for allegedly transporting smuggled cigarettes valued at P1.8 million. The suspects were identified as Aziz, a 36-year-old businessman, and a 34-year-old patrolman....
The Philippines must step up law enforcement and gather independent data to combat persistent illicit trade if it wants future tax hikes on nicotine and tobacco to succeed, according to a global tax expert. While the nation has made significant progress in curbing smoking rates over the past...
Bureau of Customs (BOC) Commissioner Ariel F. Nepomuceno has ordered officials of the country ’s second largest revenue agency to intensify the crackdown on all forms of smuggling, with particular focus on the illegal trade in oil and agricultural products. “You are hereby directed to further...
CAMP OLIVAS, Pampanga – Authorities seized approximately P22-million worth of illegally traded petroleum products and arrested eight suspects during a joint anti-smuggling operation in Barangay San Benito, Dinalupihan, Bataan, early Thursday. In a statement, the Police Regional Office (PRO) 3...
A police officer assigned to Camp Crame, Quezon City is facing criminal and administrative charges after he was arrested in a Pagadian City checkpoint on Sunday, July 12, for alleged smuggling. Investigation said that authorities established the checkpoint in Barangay Tiguma after receiving a tip...
BUTUAN CITY – Police seized smuggled cigarettes valued at P20.8 million in a checkpoint in Magsaysay, Misamis Oriental on Saturday, July 11. “The hot-pursuit operation near the border in the provinces of Agusan del Norte and Misamis Oriental also yielded three suspects,” Regional Public...
