June 15, 2025 | Davao City
Authorities seized an estimated ₱5.5 million worth of smuggled cigarettes and arrested one individual in a successful anti-smuggling operation conducted in the early hours of June 14 in Sta. Cruz, Davao del Sur.
According to the Police Regional Office 11 (PRO-11), the operation was carried out at around 12:30 a.m. by the Regional Special Operations Group (RSOG 11) in coordination with the Sta. Cruz Municipal Police Station. The operation was conducted under the directive of Regional Director PBGEN Leon Victor Z. Rosete.
Police said the action stemmed from a surveillance and casing operation on a target individual suspected of violating Republic Act 10591, or the Comprehensive Firearms and Ammunition Regulation Act.
While monitoring the area, operatives caught a male individual in the act of stacking and arranging mastercases of what appeared to be smuggled cigarettes beside a residential road. The suspect, identified only as alias “Lester,” a resident of Kiblawan, Davao del Sur, was immediately apprehended.
Seized from the suspect were 110 mastercases, or approximately 5,500 reams, of assorted brands of illicit cigarettes. Authorities estimated the value of the confiscated goods at ₱5.5 million.
Police said the suspect and the recovered contraband are now in custody for documentation and proper disposition, while further investigation is ongoing to determine the source and possible network behind the smuggling operation.
PRO-11 reiterated its commitment to intensify its campaign against smuggling and other forms of criminality across the region.