ZAMBOANGA CITY – A vessel of Cambodian registry manned by crew members from Myanmar was held last Tuesday, Feb. 24, in Sultan Kudarat by the Naval Command Western Mindanao for allegedly transporting more than 3,000 master cases of smuggled cigarettes. In an exclusive interview, Lt. Commander...
The Philippine National Police (PNP) revealed on Wednesday, Feb. 11, that it has begun case buildup against the financier behind a P47.5 million illegal cigarette operation discovered in Tarlac. Police General Jose Melencio C. Nartatez Jr., PNP chief, lauded the Criminal Investigation and Detection...
Authorities are intensifying their crackdown on tobacco smuggling as prosecutors move forward with multiple cases under the Anti-Agricultural Economic Sabotage Law (RA 12022), signaling a tougher national stance against illicit cigarette operations that officials say are costing the government...
The Philippine National Police (PNP) has focused its investigation into the illegal cigarette factory uncovered in Mexico, Pampanga toward alleged high-profile financiers, including two Northern Luzon politicians tagged as possible masterminds. Police General Jose Melencio C. Nartatez, Jr., chief...
TACLOBAN CITY – The Police Regional Office-8 monitored no high-ranking government official involved in cigarette smuggling in Eastern Visayas. But Police Col. Hector Enage, chief of the PRO-8 Regional Operations Division, confirmed that the region has been a transshipment point for smuggled...
CALASIAO, Pangasinan – Police recovered smuggled cigarettes valued at over P1.1 million and arrested two individuals in an entrapment operation in Barangay Bonuan Binloc, Dagupan City, this province, on Saturday. The Dagupan City Police Office reported that the suspects, both drivers, are a...
MALASIQUI, Pangasinan – Police intercepted a truck containing boxes of suspected smuggled cigarettes worth over P8 million in a checkpoint in Labrador, Pangasinan on Wednesday night. In an interview on Thursday, Police Major Divina Albino, chief of the Police Regional Office-1 information office,...
A measure in the Senate seeks to offer bigger, fairer, and more rational rewards for informants who would expose large-scale violators of the country’s tax and customs laws. Senator Jinggoy Estrada, who filed Senate Bill No. 1011, said that it aims to strengthen the fight against tax fraudsters...
The Philippine National Police (PNP) bared on Friday, Jan. 2, that it has begun investigating whether a single organized smuggling group is behind the P2.6 billion worth of undocumented cigarettes seized in separate New Year’s Eve operations in Batangas City and Malabon City. Police Lt. Gen. Jose...
After discovering some P1.1 billion worth of allegedly smuggled tobacco products in Batangas City, the Philippine National Police (PNP) found another P1.5 billion unregistered cigarettes in Malabon City. The discovery was made during a routine New Year’s Eve patrol by elements of the Highway...
The Philippine National Police (PNP) on Thursday, January. 1, directed a full investigation into the alleged smuggling of around P1.1 billion worth of cigarettes that were discovered in Batangas City during an anti-carnapping operation. The operation stemmed from the discovery by the Highway Patrol...
The inclusion of a P1-billion Bio-Safe biosecurity enforcement program in the 2026 budget of the Department of Agriculture (DA) will help boost the government’s anti-smuggling and food crisis program, Sen. Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan said. This particular line item in the 2026 budget, which is...
