3 abandoned illegal cigarette factories found in Pampanga
The government further intensified its crackdown on illegal cigarette manufacturers with the discovery of three more suspected illegal factories in Pampanga province that led to the seizure of P400 million worth of equipment and raw materials.
Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla said at a press briefing on Monday that the abandoned factories had posed as meat processing plants.
The establishments were found in San Fernando, Mexico and San Simon.
Seized from the factories were three tobacco drying machines, two production machines, a packing machine, four packing machine parts, raw materials, cigarette filters and suspected fake tax stamps.
100 percent illegal
Remulla said the three warehouses had operated without legal permits or authorization from the National Tobacco Administration, making these “100 percent illegal.”
He added that the factories may be connected to the Jan. 28 raid on a cigarette factory in Mexico, also in Pampanga, that led to the seizure of P400 million worth of illegally manufactured cigarettes.
Authorities arrested six Chinese nationals and rescued 65 Filipino workers who were classified as human trafficking victims in that operation.
Remulla said then that two Luzon-based lawmakers were involved in the syndicate that controls “the entire ecosystem” of the illegal cigarette trade in the country, from manufacturing to distribution and retail.
“We are looking for the ‘overall mastermind.’ We have persons of interest, we think a tobacco lord is behind the operations,” he said on Monday.
Government agencies, including the Department of the Interior and Local Government, Bureau of Customs and Philippine National Police, have been conducting raids on suspected illegal cigarette factories as part of an intensified crackdown on the illegal trade.
In July 2025, a maritime operation in Basilan waters intercepted smugglers carrying hundreds of master cases of cigarettes worth over P14.5 million.
Two months later, a similar operation in Palawan resulted in the seizure of contraband valued at P24.57 million, followed by the discovery of illegal cigarettes worth over P43 million in October in Negros Occidental and Davao City.
Authorities earlier said there may be at least 10 other illegal cigarette manufacturing sites operating nationwide.
