P5 million smuggled cigarettes seized

ZAMBOANGA CITY – Smuggled cigarettes with an estimated value of P5 million were seized by police and intelligence agents of the Bureau of Customs (BOC) in this city on Saturday.

A team composed of members of the 2nd Zamboanga City Mobile Force Company (ZCMFC) and BOC personnel were patrolling in the waters off Sta. Cruz Island when they intercepted a jungkong, a Malaysian-styled wooden-hulled motor boat, according to Brig. Gen. Ronaldo Genaro Ylagan, Zamboanga regional police director.

The boat was manned by six crewmembers from Omar town in Sulu, where the contraband was believed to have originated.

Authorities boarded the boat and discovered 145 master cases of smuggled cigarette brands such as Champion Black, Fort White, Delta and Astro.

The boat and its crewmen were taken to the 2nd ZCMFC base for investigation.

The contraband was turned over to the BOC office for destruction.