Illicit factory raided

Authorities in the Philippines have closed a factory in Bulacan that was manufacturing fake Philip Morris and Mighty cigarettes, according to a story in The Philippine Daily Inquirer quoting the Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III.
Dominguez told reporters that with the increase in prices of cigarettes under the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) Act, the government was on the lookout also for smuggled cigarettes.
“Since we raised cigarette prices, obviously there will be more incentive to smuggle, so we have to watch out,” Dominguez said.
Under the TRAIN Law or Republic Act No. 10963, the unitary excise tax imposed on cigarettes rose from P30.00 a pack to P32.50 a pack, effective January 1.
On Thursday, joint operatives of the Philippine National Police-Criminal Investigation and Detection Group and the Business Permits and Licensing Office of Guiguinto, Bulacan, raided a cigarette factory manufacturing fake cigarettes.
Initially believed to be a warehouse for illicit cigarettes, the facility was found to have a counterfeit factory at the back of the site, Dominguez said.
A Philip Morris report was said to have indicated that the inspection had resulted in the discovery of two cigarette makers, one cigarette make-pack line, hand-packing and sealing equipment, and boxes of fake tax stamps. Also discovered were boxes of filter rods, packaging materials, cut fillers, empty master cases, filter papers and other raw materials.
The authorities held one Chinese national identified as the wife of the owner of the business, and more than 70 factory workers who reportedly were all from Mindanao.
Another illicit factory was discovered in Bulacan at the end of November after it was destroyed by fire.