15 Chinese among workers held in Cabanatuan cigarette factory raid

ROUNDED UP Some of the Chinese nationals arrested for operating a factory producing fake cigarettes in Barangay Cinco-Cinco, Cabanatuan City, hide their faces when presented to the media
on Thursday by the National Bureau of Investigation. —ARMAND GALANG

CABANATUAN CITY—Fifteen Chinese nationals and 100 Filipino workers were detained and charged with violation of the Anti-Agricultural Economic Sabotage Act (Republic Act No. 12022) on Friday after authorities from the National Bureau of Investigation and the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) raided a clandestine cigarette factory in Barangay Cinco-Cinco here.

In an interview, NBI Director Jaime Santiago said the raid, led by NBI Central Luzon Assistant Regional Director Isaac Carpeso Jr., was the result of an intensive intelligence operation.

He said a search warrant was not necessary as the BIR exercises visitorial powers over businesses suspected of violating tax laws.

The NBI Central Luzon office has filed the charges against the suspects at the Cabanatuan City Prosecutor’s Office.

Charges for violations of revenue laws would also be filed against them.

The Chinese suspects were identified as Lizhe, 37; Hang Xin Giao, 57; Liu Tiu, 54; Liu Pei Long, 48; Wang Yi Bo, 47; Song Bao Bao, 56; Xu Wei, 52; Zhu Zui, 55; Wang Yuanfei, 47; Wang Lili, 51; Hanz Qi, 35; Wu Zeng, 44; Gao Qiu, 47; Cheng He, 45; and Cheng Tan Ong, 45—all residing at the factory.

One of the Chinese nationals, who served as an overseer of the factory workers, could speak Filipino, Santiago added.

ECONOMIC SABOTAGE Bureau of Internal Revenue Chief Romeo Lumagui Jr. leads the raid on a clandestine cigarette factory in Cabanatuan City on Thursday that resulted in the seizure of hundreds of cases of fake tobacco products and the arrest of 15 Chinese and 100 Filipino workers. —ARMAND GALANG

The NBI identified the factory’s owner as June Canlas, a resident of Purok 2, Barangay San Josef Sur, also in this city.

During the raid on Thursday, authorities seized hundreds of cases of tobacco products and five large manufacturing machines.

Santiago revealed the factory was producing counterfeit versions of both local and imported cigarette brands.

BIR Commissioner Romeo Lumagui Jr., who inspected the seized items, estimated that the factory’s current inventory could have generated around P600 million in excise taxes. Investigators also found over 500,000 fake tax stamps.

“If you look at their daily and monthly operations, the potential tax revenue we could have collected is enormous,” Lumagui said.

According to Lumagui, all confiscated items, including the machines, would be destroyed.

‘Filthy’

Lumagui also noted the unsanitary conditions of the factory, pointing out that the poor hygiene posed additional health risks to consumers on top of the dangers associated with smoking.

“One thing we noticed here is how filthy the facility is. People don’t realize they’re inhaling these products without knowing the unsanitary conditions in which they were made,” he said.

Although one of the Chinese nationals claimed they had been at the factory for less than two weeks, NBI officials suspect the operation had been running much longer due to the unsanitary state of the facility.

He urged the public not to purchase any tobacco products, including vapes, that do not have proper tax stamps, as the absence of these stamps indicates that the products are illegal and unregulated.