MORE than 500 kilos of suspected shabu worth around P3.6 billion were seized by operatives of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) in a “controlled” operation in Pampanga last September 24.
The Department of Justice said this is the “biggest catch” since October 2022 when authorities confiscated 990 kilos of shabu worth P6.7 billion in Tondo, Manila.
Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said 530 kilos of suspected shabu were seized in a warehouse in Mexico, Pampanga. He said the shabu were placed inside 59 boxes, with each box containing a plastic bag of pork rinds or dried fish to conceal the illegal drugs along with cases of soft drinks and sacks of feeds with markings in the Thai language.
He said the illegal drugs arrived at Subic Port, SBMA last September 18 from Thailand aboard the vessel Sitc Shekou.
Remulla stressed the need to closely monitor Subic, saying it has become a gateway for drug smugglers.
“We have to watch Subic. Actually, we have also pinpointed Subic as the source of agri smuggling,” Remulla told reporters in a press briefing.
He said the smuggling of the illegal drugs was conducted in a “very sophisticated” manner.
“Very, very sophisticated ang kanilang methodology. I do not want to reveal anything yet but even our K9 unit was not as effective. Perhaps, we have to retrain some of our K9 (units) to be able to be more sophisticated in trying to smell the drugs,” he said.
Remulla said the NBI Task Force Against Illegal Drugs, through an undercover operative, managed to penetrate the drug syndicate and led to the discovery of the plan to smuggle drugs into the country.
He said the operation started in 2020 and culminated when combined NBI, Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency and National Intelligence Coordinating Agency operatives seized the illegal drugs.
Remulla said the NBI already has a list of individuals to be arrested, but declined to provide additional details.
“I can’t answer that yet. That is an operational thing. This is a very intricate operation that happened,” he said, adding the ongoing investigation seeks to uncover how the illegal drugs were not detected by customs officials at the Subic port.
“We have a list of people to be arrested. It is being worked on by the NBI. The NBI’s job now is pursuing these people since this is a very intricate operation planned months ago,” he added.
Remulla said the NBI is also conducting a financial investigation in tandem with the Anti-Money Laundering Council against the corporations tagged as being used as conduits to traffic the seized illegal drugs.
Asked if foreign nationals could be behind the operation of the syndicate, Remulla said, “Definitely.”
“Definitely, meron. Thailand is one of the sources of the drugs. The markings of many of the packaging have Thai markings. Definitely, may foreign involvement,” Remulla said, adding they are looking at the involvement of the Chinese Triad, a Thai syndicate and a West African drug syndicate.
Authorities seized 990 kilos of shabu worth P6.7 billion in Tondo, Manila from a lending company owned by a policeman in October 2022.
