Authorities seized nearly P6 million worth of illicit cigarettes during simultaneous operations in two stores in Caloocan City, the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) said.
The operations were conducted from around 11:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on July 7 by the CIDG Anti-Fraud and Commercial Crimes Unit and the Bureau of Internal Revenue-Revenue District Office (BIR-RDO) No. 5.
The teams implemented two BIR mission orders covering stores in Barangay Camarin and Barangay Bagong Silang as part of a crackdown on illicit tobacco products.
Authorities confiscated cigarettes valued at an estimated P5,972,519.18. The seized items allegedly bore tampered, counterfeit, or otherwise fraudulent BIR tax stamps, in violation of the National Internal Revenue Code.
The CIDG said the operation stemmed from a request for law enforcement assistance from BIR Revenue Region No. 5 over reports of tobacco products bearing fraudulent BIR stamps being traded in the CaMaNaVa and Bulacan areas.
The CIDG said it will continue to protect public revenues by ensuring the proper payment of excise taxes and prevent the manufacture, sale, distribution, and possession of illicit tobacco products with counterfeit or tampered tax stamps, and strengthen its efforts against tax evasion and cigarette smuggling in support of efforts to protect legitimate trade and the national economy.
The CIDG also assured the BIR of continued support in joint enforcement operations against the proliferation of fraudulent, counterfeit, and missing excise tax stamps on illicit cigarettes.