ZAMBOANGA CITY — Operatives from the Bureau of Customs and police intercepted a shipment of about 70,000 liters of smuggled petroleum products with an estimated market value of P2.8 million and arrested five crews — four Malaysians and a Filipino — in Sitangkai, Tawi-Tawi.

BoC Zamboanga City district collector Segundo Barte Jr. disclosed that a concerned citizen tipped the agency about a shipment of petroleum products that will arrive in Sitangkai, Tawi-Tawi on Sunday.

With the information, operating units of the Tawi-Tawi Provincial Mobile Force Company — in coordination with the BoC sub-pot Tawi-Tawi and Sitangkai Municipal Police Station — conducted a seaborne patrol operation in the seawaters of Sitangkai, Tawi-Tawi Sunday morning.

As the team patrolled the seas of Sitangkai, they spotted and intercepted M/V MASMUD 1 and immediately boarded the barge to check its cargoes.

According to Barte, the team found the barge loaded with about 10,000 liters of diesel with an estimated market value of P400,000 and about 60,000 liters of gasoline with an estimated market value of P2.4 million.

The crew was not able to present any pertinent documents which led to their detention. The crew members were identified as Rome Fernandez Anung Jr., a Filipino and Malaysian nationals Zulkifli Bin Baksing, Zulfendy Bin Salim, Zulkifle Bin Akim and Mohd Shahrulaffandi Bin Yahaya.

Barte said the barge, serving as a courier of smuggled petroleum products has violated RA 9295 chapter VIII of Philippine Merchant Marine Rules And Regulations of 1997 — Carriage of Dangerous Goods in Ships and Barges.

The arrested crew members are detained at the Tawi-Tawi Provincial Mobile Force Company while the smuggled goods and the barge were turned over by the operating team to the BoC sub-port for inventory, documentation, and proper disposition.