{"id":18950,"date":"2026-03-03T10:45:57","date_gmt":"2026-03-03T02:45:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/journaldailynewsonline.com.ph\/?p=18950"},"modified":"2026-03-03T10:45:57","modified_gmt":"2026-03-03T02:45:57","slug":"central-luzon-police-intensifies-drug-anti-smuggling-drive","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/journaldailynewsonline.com.ph\/index.php\/2026\/03\/03\/central-luzon-police-intensifies-drug-anti-smuggling-drive\/","title":{"rendered":"CENTRAL LUZON POLICE INTENSIFIES DRUG, ANTI-SMUGGLING DRIVE"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>BY KEVIN GALANG<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>THE Police Regional Office 3\u2019s (PRO3\u2019s) intensified anti-illegal drugs and smuggling drive resulted in the confiscation of nearly P3 million worth of illegal drugs and over P100,000 worth of smuggled cigarettes in a series of operations in Central Luzon over the past week.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>PRO3 officials highlighted the gains from intelligence-driven operations and sustained enforcement activities aligned with the Philippine National Police\u2019s Focused Agenda.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>PRO3 director\u00a0 Brig. Gen. Jess B. Mendez emphasized that the results reflect the region\u2019s commitment to lawful, disciplined, and accountable police operations.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>\u201cThese efforts are anchored on strategic enforcement and community partnership. Our objective is not only to confiscate contraband, but to protect communities from the broader harm caused by illegal drugs and illicit trade. We uphold judicious action in every decision, pursue excellence in every operation, and deliver dedicated service to our community \u2014 ensuring safety for all,\u201d Mendez said.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Authorities reported that P2,959,455.22 worth of illegal drugs were seized through coordinated buy-bust operations, implementation of search warrants, and police interventions conducted by various provincial and city police offices throughout the region.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>The drive against smuggled cigarettes \u00a0the led to the seizure of some <\/strong><strong>P158,129 worth of illegal tobacco products <\/strong><strong>forms part of the government\u2019s strengthened campaign against illicit trade.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Officials noted that cigarette smuggling not only undermines legitimate businesses but also deprives the government of substantial tax revenues.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>The anti-smuggling operations are in line with directives from Interior and Local Government Secretary\u00a0 Juanito Victor Remulla Jr.,\u00a0 who has called for intensified enforcement actions against illegal trade activities.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Likewise, the region\u2019s anti-illegal drug efforts continue to follow the guidance of PNP chief Gen. Jose Melencio C. Nartatez Jr., who advocates intelligence-driven operations and stronger accountability mechanisms under the PNP Focused Agenda.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>PRO3 assured the public that sustained operations against illegal drugs, smuggling, and other criminal activities will continue across Central Luzon, reinforcing its commitment to public safety, operational excellence, and institutional professionalism.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>BY KEVIN GALANG &nbsp; THE Police Regional Office 3&rsquo;s (PRO3&rsquo;s) intensified anti-illegal drugs and smuggling drive resulted in the confiscation of nearly P3 million worth<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":18951,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[6],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/journaldailynewsonline.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18950"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/journaldailynewsonline.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/journaldailynewsonline.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/journaldailynewsonline.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/journaldailynewsonline.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18950"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/journaldailynewsonline.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18950\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18952,"href":"https:\/\/journaldailynewsonline.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18950\/revisions\/18952"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/journaldailynewsonline.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/18951"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/journaldailynewsonline.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18950"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/journaldailynewsonline.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18950"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/journaldailynewsonline.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18950"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}