PHP 632,025 worth of illicit cigarettes seized in Escalante

By Glazyl M. Jopson

BACOLOD CITY — Three persons were arrested after authorities seized PHP 632,025 worth of illicit cigarettes in Barangay Washington, Escalante City, Negros Occidental, early Monday, Feb. 23.

Arrested were alias “Monmon,” 27, alias “Eli,” 23, and alias “Evan,” 22, all residents of the said village.

Police Capt. Lindsey Caraballe, deputy chief of the Escalante City Police Station, said the three suspects were caught in the act carrying the smuggled cigarettes on a tricycle past midnight.

He added that they were verifying an intelligence report about a tricycle in the area when they spotted the suspects.

However, the suspects did not provide any information as to where the cigarettes were sourced or where they would be distributed.

Caraballe said it is possible the cigarettes came from outside the province.

The arrest follows the confiscation of PHP 787,500 worth of smuggled cigarettes from a vehicle abandoned by an unidentified person in Barangay Balintawak on Feb. 16.

Caraballe said they are probing whether the two incidents could be linked.

He said business owners in the city’s markets are aware of the consequences of selling illicit cigarettes, adding that authorities have been strengthening their campaign against the trade.

The three suspects will be charged with violations of Republic Act 10643, or the Graphic Health Warning Law; RA 8424, also known as the Tax Reform Act of 1997; and RA 10863, or the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act.

Last week, there were also reports of abandoned cigarettes in Victorias City and the surrender of PHP 316,000 worth of smuggled cigarettes at a public market in San Carlos City.

The string of seizures across northern Negros Occidental reflects a broader national crackdown on illicit cigarettes, which the Bureau of Internal Revenue has identified as a major source of tax leakage. The government loses an estimated PHP 30 billion to PHP 60 billion annually in foregone excise tax revenues due to smuggled and counterfeit cigarettes, according to industry and government estimates.