CAMP OLIVAS, Pampanga — A routine mobile patrol by the Cabanatuan City Police Station (CCPS) led to the interception of 564 boxes of suspected illicit cigarettes worth an estimated P35.25 million and the discovery of three abandoned vehicles and a suspected storage site in Cabanatuan City early Monday morning (June 29).
At around 5:50 a.m., CCPS mobile patrollers observed a suspicious individual hastily boarding a gray Toyota Hi-Ace van along Barangay Mabini Homesite, leaving behind a white Toyota Hi-Ace van with its rear door open. Upon inspection, the responding officers immediately spotted boxes of suspected illicit cigarettes bearing the markings “RGD 96 JLOONG.”
The officers promptly secured the abandoned vehicle and issued a flash alarm to nearby patrol units, leading to the discovery of another abandoned Toyota Hi-Ace van and a Toyota Fortuner, both likewise loaded with suspected illicit cigarettes.
A follow-up inspection in the area further led authorities to a nearby house believed to have been used as a storage site, where hundreds of additional boxes of suspected illicit cigarettes were recovered. Investigators also recovered a sling bag containing a driver’s license, which is now being used as part of the ongoing investigation.
In all, authorities seized 564 boxes of suspected illicit cigarettes with an estimated value of P35,250,000, based on the Bureau of Internal Revenue’s valuation.
The inventory of the recovered items is being conducted in the presence of barangay officials, while coordination has been established with the Bureau of Internal Revenue for their proper disposition. Authorities are also preparing charges for violations of the National Internal Revenue Code of the Philippines and Republic Act No. 10643, or the Graphic Health Warnings Law, against those responsible.
PRO3 Director P/Brig. Gen. Jess B. Mendez, commended the alertness and swift response of the operating personnel, saying the accomplishment demonstrates the PNP’s intensified campaign against illicit trade in line with the directive of Secretary of the Interior and Local Government Juanito Victor Remulla Jr and PNP Chief P/Gen. Jose Melencio C Nartatez Jr. (UnliNews Online)
