MANILA: The Bureau of Customs (BoC) has seized more than P12 million worth of smuggled and counterfeit cigarettes in Davao City, its biggest haul of illegal cigarettes so far.
On Dec. 3, the bureau’s Enforcement Group conducted a raid in warehouses across the city which yielded a haul worth P12.68 million of fake cigarette sticks posing as products of Philip Morris Fortune Tobacco Corp.
“The raiding team of the Enforcement Group brought samples of Marlboro, More, Fortune, Philip Morris, Jackpot, Hope and other assorted cigarettes to Philip Morris Philippines, Inc. (PMFTC, Inc.) to examine the authenticity of these suspected smuggled imports,” the BoC said in a statement on Monday. “There, PMFTC, Inc. confirmed that the sample cigarettes were not produced by or with the permission of Philip Morris International, and are therefore counterfeit.”
The items were seized from storage facilities owned by the local HBTT Marketing Warehouse, the BoC said.
Warrants of seizures and detention were given to warehouse officials for nonpayment of tax duties, as well as for violating the Intellectual Property Rights law.
Customs officials conduct investigations and raids as part of its agency-wide efforts to curb smuggling, either coming from a tip or motu proprio.
