Cops seize P1.5-M worth of cigarettes from Sulu, Tawi-Tawi operations

COTABATO CITY — Policemen confiscated P1.5 million worth of imported cigarettes in separate anti-smuggling operations in Bongao, Tawi-Tawi and in Patikul, Sulu in two days.

Brig. Gen. Prexy Tanggawohn, director of the Police Regional Office-Bangsamoro Autonomous Region, told reporters on Monday that the confiscated contraband shall be turned over to the Bureau of Customs for its disposition.

Acting on tips by villagers, personnel of different police units in Tawi-Tawi found 85 large boxes containing cigarettes with Indonesian brands in a small warehouse in Barangay Lamion, Bongao town on Friday.

The illegal merchandise, now in the custody of the Bongao Municipal Police Station, was delivered the day before by a small seacraft that informants said had come from the southernmost part of the province, close to Indonesia and Malaysia.

Policemen seized P399,000 worth of Indonesian-made cigarettes on Saturday in a seaside area in Barangay Tandu Bagua in Patikul, Sulu.

In a report on Sunday to Tanggawohn’s office, the Sulu Provincial Police Office stated that the smuggled cigarettes were unloaded by boatmen in a secluded area in Barangay Tandu Bagua. They were supposed to be taken by contacts, who fled when they noticed patrolling policemen approaching their location.

Tanggawohn said barangay officials are helping police investigators identify who were behind the attempt to deliver the seven large boxes containing Indonesian-made cigarettes to retailers in Barangay Tandu Bagua.