LAWMEN have scored anew in the anti-smuggling campaign as they arrested an individual and seized some P20.1 million worth of smuggled cigarettes shipment in the province of Maguindanao del Norte, the police said Sunday, March 22, 2026.
Police Brigadier General Jaysen De Guzman, Police Regional Office-Bangsamoro Autonomous Region (PRO-BAR) director, did not identify the arrested individual except to say he is a 42-year-old driver and a resident of Dipolog City, Zamboanga del Norte.
De Guzman said the individual was arrested and smuggled shipment seized around 6:30 a.m. Friday, March 20, in Pinantao village, Parang, Maguindanao del Norte.
De Guzman said the police operatives in coordination with the Bureau of Customs (BOC) established a checkpoint when they received reliable information about the transport of smuggled cigarettes from the province of Lanao del Sur.
He said seized during the checkpoint operation were 345 master cases of assorted smuggled cigarettes worth P20,182,500 and a wing van truck.
He said the driver will be charged for violation of Article 151 of the Revised Penal Code for failure to comply with standard checkpoint procedures.
He commended the operating units for their swift and coordinated response, emphasizing that intensified checkpoint operations will continue as part of sustained efforts to combat smuggling and other illegal activities in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (Barmm).
The confiscation of the P20.1 million worth of smuggled cigarettes by the police was the second in less than a week period in Maguindanao del Norte province.
The first was on Tuesday, March 17, in Sitio Marayag, Bayanga Norte village, Matanog, Maguindanao del Norte where the police seized some P6.4 million worth of smuggled cigarettes.
The smuggled cigarettes were concealed in a drum aboard a mixer truck. The driver and his helper were arrested during the law enforcement operation. (SunStar Zamboanga)