POLICE seized P70 million worth of alleged smuggled cigarettes in an operation in Picong, Lanao del Sur on Sunday, June 14, 2026.
In a report, the Bangsamoro Regional Police Office said 21 individuals were apprehended during the operation conducted at around 3 a.m. in three vacant lots near the coastal area in Barangay Liyangan, which are believed to be used as a makeshift storage area for the smuggled contraband.
Of the arrested individuals, five were minors who were turned over to the Municipal Social Welfare and Development Office.
Police said the smuggled cigarettes are being transported by sea.
Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief General Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. commended the seizure of the smuggled cigarettes, which had an impact on the country’s economy.
“We continue to be relentless in this campaign to send a strong message that this illegal activity has no place in any part of the country. Our coordination and support system is also getting stronger both against smuggling and illegal production of cigarettes,” he said.
He is referring to the assistance provided by the Philippine Army in the conduct of raids and in securing the three sites where the smuggled cigarettes were discovered and confiscated.
Nartatez said follow-up operations are now being conducted against at least four people whose names were mentioned during the course of the initial investigation.
“We are now preparing criminal charges against those arrested and all those who are involved in this illegal activity, including the owners of these makeshift storage areas,” he said.
Billions of pesos worth of smuggled and illegally produced cigarettes, as well as manufacturing equipment, were seized since Nartatez assumed the top PNP post.
Nartatez vowed to sustain the gains and ordered his men to further intensify the coordination with the communities, adding that residents became instrumental in the discovery of most of the successful anti-cigarette smuggling operations. (TPM/SunStar Philippines)