Authorities at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) arrested Monday night a 22-year-old Malaysian after his luggage yielded cocaine, Bureau of Immigration (BI) Commissioner Jaime Morente said.
The BI chief identified the suspected drug mule as Nasiruddin Bin Mohd Hasnan, who was intercepted by BI intelligence agents and members of the NAIA-Drug Interdiction Task Group at the NAIA I arrival area.
Morente said customs officials later seized from the Malaysian 216 pieces of high grade cocaine in pellet form weighing 4,617.5 grams in total.
Members of the BI’s border monitoring and security unit reported that the task force was tipped by agents of the US Drug Enforcement Agency about the impending arrival of the suspect aboard an Ethiopian Airlines flight from Kuala Lumpur which originated from Addis Ababa and Togo.
Nasiruddin reportedly stayed in the Malaysian capital for 24 hours before proceeding to Manila.
DITG operatives tagged and monitored the courier as soon as he presented himself at the immigration counter and they later accosted and invited him to the customs office for inspection.
“Subject did not have a checked-in luggage and the task group decided to allow a controlled delivery to determine who will pick up the subject at the airport.
However, at around 7:30 p.m., the task group decided to move in and arrest the subject when it became apparent that no one will pick him up as he hailed a taxi,” the BMSU said in its report.
“Examination of his carry-on luggage revealed the pellets of cocaine hidden among Lindt chocolates in a canister,” it added. (JUN RAMIREZ)
