Authorities recovered suspected smuggled cigarettes valued at about P5.1 million along the coastal area of Barangay Bongalunan in Basay, Negros Oriental, early morning of March 4.
The operation was carried out after intelligence units received information about abandoned boxes believed to contain contraband in the area.
Personnel from the Provincial Intelligence Unit and other security units conducted verification and located several cartons of cigarettes left near the shoreline.
Operatives said the products bore unauthorized tax seals and lacked the mandatory health warning labels required under the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act.
Seized items included 52 cartons of FORT Filter King cigarettes and 50 cartons of assorted brands suspected to have been smuggled into the country.
Authorities estimated the value of the recovered items at about Php 5,100,000.
The confiscated cigarettes were turned over to the Basay Municipal Police Station for proper documentation and further disposition.