Customs seizes P6.5M worth of smuggled cigarettes in Malabon

The Bureau of Customs said Sunday that its operatives seized P6.5 million worth of smuggled cigarettes in a raid on a warehouse in Malabon City last Wednesday.

In press release sent on media, the BOC said the seizure was undertaken under the bureau’s campaign against smuggling of fake tobacco products, with the leadership of the bureau's Enforcement and Security Service Quick Reaction Team (ESS-QRT).

Customs said that the warehouse targeted by the raid is located in Barangay Tugatog in Malabon.

Seized during the raid were 196 master cases of illicit cigarettes of various brands with estimated value P6.5 million.

Further investigation is being conducted to identify the owner of the products as well as the owner of the warehouse, the BOC said, adding that an inventory is ongoing to ascertain the volume and amount of the seized goods.

According to the ESS, the people behind the warehouse and the illicit products are liable for violation of Section 1400 of R.A. 10863 also known as the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act, as well the provisions of R.A. 8424 also known as the National Internal Revenue Code of the Philippines for the lack and falsification of tax stamps. —LBG, GMA News