Malabang: Alert police teams, acting quickly on intelligence reports, seized some PHP16 million worth of smuggled cigarettes on board three abandoned cargo trucks in Malabang, Lanao del Sur early Tuesday. Brig. Gen. Jaysen de Guzman, Director of the Police Regional Office-Bangsamoro Autonomous Region (PRO-BAR), said officers of the Malabang Municipal Police Station and Police Special Action Force proceeded to Barangay BPS to verify the reports.

According to Philippines News Agency, police found the three trucks but without their drivers, ignition keys and pertinent vehicle documents. 'The trucks were loaded with coconuts concealing a large quantity of cigarettes believed to be smuggled,' De Guzman said. Police found 90 master cases of Berlin cigarettes and 313 master cases of Canon cigarettes, which will be transferred to the Bureau of Customs.

De Guzman commended the operating units for sustaining the momentum of the fight against smuggling in the region. 'It highlights the consistency of PRO-BAR in intensifying anti-smuggling operations that gravely affect the country's economy,' De Guzman said.