This time, ‘shabu’ cargo from Laos reaches PH before seizure
A 200-kilogram shipment of crystal meth or “shabu” with an estimated street value of P1.36 billion was intercepted at the Manila International Container Port, authorities said on Wednesday.
An initial investigation conducted by the Bureau of Customs (BOC) traced the origin of the shipment to landlocked Laos, where the local police on Oct. 1 also found 521 kg of shabu on a private plane bound for the Philippines.
From Laos, the contraband seized on Wednesday was first moved to Haiphong in neighboring Vietnam, then loaded on a ship that later docked in Hong Kong, before arriving in a freight container at the Manila port on Oct. 6.
Tip from Vietnam
After the prescribed period passed without anyone claiming the shipment, authorities opened the container and found the drugs packed in about 50 boxes. On paper, the cargo was simply declared as “cardboard boxes.”
Tests later confirmed the contents to be shabu, according to the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA).
The PDEA earlier received a tip on the shipment from its Vietnamese counterpart, and the BOC was also notified when the suspicious cargo left Haiphong.
Lt. Gen. Neri Vincent Ignacio, deputy chief for operations of the Philippine National Police, said the ongoing investigation was now focusing on the consignee and other possible personalities behind the shipment.
Asean cooperation
In a statement on Wednesday, Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla attributed the latest interception to the “collaboration’’ among members of the Association of Southeast Asean Nations (Asean).
“What is important here is that you can see all the Asean nations working together to combat illegal drugs,” said Remulla, who also cited the lead provided by Vietnam.
“The entire circular economy of drugs has to stop,” he stressed.
On Oct. 16, Remulla named 11 ‘’persons of interest’’ who were being investigated for possible involvement in the drug smuggling attempt foiled in Laos.
Among the 11 was a Bangsamoro politician and former member of the autonomous region’s parliament, Sultan Edrieza Nasser Rimbang, who later publicly denied being the financier of the operation.
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