Security forces seize P398-M smuggled cigarettes off Tawi-Tawi

ZAMBOANGA CITY – Philippine authorities seized over P398 million worth of smuggled cigarettes from a cargo ship off the southern province of Tawi-Tawi near Sabah in Malaysia.

Security forces intercepted the vessel, M/V Samson, manned by 10 Indonesian crew members, on Feb. 1, but was only reported on Thursday, Feb. 22 for a still unknown reason.

Philippine Navy photos show the seized smuggled cigarettes from M/V Samson off Tawi-Tawi province near the Malaysian Sabah border in the South. And MapCarta of Pearl Bank.

 

The Naval Forces Western Mindanao Command said the cargo ship was loaded with over 10,000 cases of cigarettes when security forces intercepted and searched the vessel for contraband and narcotics.

 

It said the operation involved the military and multiple law enforcement agencies after the National Coast Watch Center (NCWC) raised suspicion the vessel was transporting prohibited drugs and other contraband.

The NCWC, established in September 2011, serves as the national maritime point of contact for maritime security coordination and operations. The Philippine Coast Guard, Philippine Navy, the PNP-Maritime Group, Philippine Center on Transnational Crime, National Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Customs, the National Prosecution Service of the Department of Justice, Bureau of Immigration, Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources are among its support agencies.

The Naval Forces Western Mindanao Command said contraband was turned over to the Bureau of Customs here on Feb. 10 and on Feb. 14, the Staff Judge Advocate coordinated with the local Public Attorneys Office to make proper legal representation for the Indonesian national crewmen in preparation for their deportation. 

And on Feb. 19, the Naval Forces Western Mindanao Command sent an official letter requesting the Bureau of Immigration in Manila for the proper deportation of the Indonesians. And as in the past operations, authorities did not say who owns the contraband or where it originated and its consignee. (Mindanao Examiner)