P30M worth of misdeclared cigarettes from China seized in Cagayan de Oro

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY, Misamis Oriental, Philippines – Customs authorities seized a cigarette shipment from China estimated to be worth P30-million, officials at the Bureau of Customs (BOC) in the region said on Monday.

Oliver Valiente, field station chief of the Customs Intelligence and Investigation Service (CIIS) here, said the shipment which arrived at the Mindanao Container Terminal sub-port in Tagoloan, Misamis Oriental on Thursday, May 20, was wrongfully declared as personal effects.

But when customs officials partially examined the shipment the following day, Friday, they discovered imported cigarettes and some footwear inside the container van, Valiente said.

“The shipment was consigned to a certain Lorna Oftana from General Santos City and she is now under investigation for possible violation of [Republic Act] 10863, also known as Customs Modernization and Tariff Act (CMTA),” Simon said.

“A warrant of seizure and detention has also been issued against the shipment,” he added.

Valiente said national intelligence agencies had tipped his office about the shipment before it arrived at the Tagoloan port, prompting them to request John Simon, the BOC-10 district collector, to issue an alert order.

Simon commended BOC personnel here for the successful operation.

Last year, BOC officials apprehended some P110 million worth of smuggled cigarettes in Northern Mindanao.

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