The relentless campaign of the Bureau of Internal Revenue against counterfeit cigarettes yielded hundreds of mastercases of these illegal products with fake or no tax stamps in a series of raids conducted in Malabon City and Sta. Cruz, Manila.
BIR commissioner Caesar Dulay earlier formed a task force headed by revenue officer Remedios Advincula Jr., who led a BIR strike team that discovered the fake cigarette products.
The BIR operatives, in coordination with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency, found out large quantities of fake Marlboro cigarettes during a raid on a shabu factory located at No. 7, Tila St., Barangay Santolan, Malabon on April 17.
Around 150 mastercases of fake Marlboros were discovered in a leased property in Malabon. The team is working on seizing these products through the BIR.
Follow-up operations on April 19 in Potrero, Malabon saw the BIR operatives again seizing hundreds of counterfeit cigarettes comprising of 28 mastercases of Winston Red, 20 mastercases of Fortune green, eight mastercases of Marlboro Red and 69 mastercases of Marvels Menthol.
The BIR strike team on April 20 confiscated a total of 32 mastercases of fake cigarettes in a raid conducted at Pearl Tower 1447, B-106, G. Masangkay St., Sta. Cruz, Manila.