Smuggled cigarettes worth PHP100,000 found in Pontevedra

By Glazyl M. Jopson

BACOLOD CITY — Police are pursuing leads on the identities of two individuals seen allegedly transporting smuggled cigarettes that were later found abandoned along the roadside in Hacienda Casal-agan Dako, Barangay DSB, Pontevedra, Negros Occidental, on Monday.

Police Capt. Darryl Kuhutan, chief of the Pontevedra Municipal Police Station, said officers responded to a report about two men suspiciously spotted in the area late at night.

Upon arrival, police discovered 120 reams of wet cigarettes packed in two plastic bags left at the roadside shortly before midnight.

Kuhutan said the suspects fled on a motorcycle, but authorities are now tracking them based on initial leads.

He added that police are investigating whether the cigarettes were meant for distribution to local stores or if the suspects were merely passing through the area.

All recovered items were properly documented and transported to the police station for safekeeping, pending turnover to the appropriate government agency.

Last month, the Philippine Coast Guard–Southern Negros Occidental intercepted around 100 boxes of assorted smuggled cigarettes at Old Pantalan in Barangay Cartagena, Sipalay City. The shipment was reportedly transported illegally from Mindanao.