P28-M ‘fake’ cigarettes seized

BACOLOR, Pampanga — Counterfeit cigarettes worth some P28 million were seized by the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) from a factory in the Bacolor export processing zone, last Wednesday.

The factory is run by the Foreitrans Manufacturing Corp., which is reportedly owned by Chinese nationals. The company is said to export some P10 million of its products weekly to Taiwan and other Asian countries.

The raid, based on a search warrant issued by Pampanga Judge Pedro Sunga, yielded cigarettes under the "Dageta" brand whose size, color and packaging were said to be similar to the "Davidoff Classic" brand being legally manufactured by the Makati City-based Imperial Tobacco Inc.

CIDG agents, led by Senior Inspector Joel de Mesa, noted that the cigarette packs were marked "Made in Germany," violating the Intellectual Property Code which requires locally manufactured products to be marked "Made in the Philippines." — Ding Cervantes, Ric Sapnu