Members of the Philippine Coast Guard-Southern Negros Occidental recovered about 100 boxes of allegedly smuggled cigarettes at the old port of Barangay Cartagena in Sipalay City, Thursday morning, Nov. 27.
The Coast Guard received a report regarding the presence of smuggled cigarettes in the area.
More than 20 persons ran after detecting the presence of operatives in the area.
The crew and laborers abandoned the boat loaded with cartons of cigarettes, as well as two panel vans also loaded with cigarettes.
Meanwhile, the boat, which was already on the shoreline, was wrecked after it hit the rocky portion of the beach due to the big waves.
Based on the number found on the boat, it came from Basilan.
The two panel vans and the cigarettes are now in the custody of the Coast Guard.
The Coast Guard coordinated with the Bureau of Internal Revenue to inventory and determine the market value of the seized cigarettes.
At present, the authorities have not determined who owns the smuggled cigarettes.*