AUTHORITIES have arrested three persons as they seized shipments of smuggled petroleum products off Sitangkai, Tawi-Tawi, the police said Sunday, June 22, 2025.
The Tawi-Tawi Maritime Police Station (Tawi-Tawi Marpsta) said the shipments were seized by personnel of the 1st Special Operations Unit (1SOU) around 5 a.m. Friday, June 20, in the waters of the island town of Sitangkai, Tawi-Tawi.
The 1SOU personnel were aboard a patrol boat conducting maritime patrol when they chanced upon two motorboats loaded with some 3,400 liters or 16 drums of gasoline.
One of the two motorboats is manned by two persons while the other by an individual, who identities were not immediately available.
The police said all of the three individuals manning the two motorboats failed to present the necessary documents for transporting petroleum, which is a violation of Republic Act 10863 or the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act (CMTA).
The three individuals including the two motorboats and containers of gasoline were taken to the 1SOU headquarters for the proper documentation prior to formal turnover to the Bureau of Customs in Bongao, Tawi-Tawi. (SunStar Zamboanga)