A P50-million shipment of smuggled cigarettes from China were recently destroyed in Bukidnon via heavy machinery, the Bureau of Customs (BOC) said Thursday, July 29.

CRUSHED!--A total of 85,000 reams of smuggled cigarettes from China worth P50 million were destroyed at a facility in Bukidnon on July 28, 2021. (Photo courtesy of the BOC)

A total of 1,700 master cases--equivalent to 85,000 reams of cigarettes--were destroyed by authorities from the Port of Cagayan de Oro at the facility of Terra Cycliq Corporation in Barangay Mantibugao, Manolo Fortich, Bukidnon on Wednesday, July 28.

Two Moon, Mighty, Marvel, and Royal were among the seized cigarette brands. They were destroyed using a road roller and backhoe, the bureau said.

The contraband reportedly arrived in the country through the Mindanao Container Terminal (MCT) in Tagoloan on Sept. 18, 2020.

Consigned to Denian Dry Goods Trading, the shipment from China was declared as "office furniture".

The smuggled items were loaded inside two containers, which were subjected to 100 percent physical examination by the Customs Intelligence Investigative Service (CIIS), Field Station, and Enforcement and Security Service (ESS) Cagayan de Oro (CDO) District.

“This apprehension is still a result of our continuous intelligence sharing with other government agencies and the international intelligence community to ensure our border protection against smuggling,” said Oliver Valiente, chief of CIIS-CDO.

Meanwhile, the consignee will be charged with misdeclaration of goods description under Republic Act (RA) No.10863, otherwise known as the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act (CMTA).

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