The suspects involved in the P6.5 billion illegal drug haul in Valenzuela last week are now being hunted down by the authorities.
Bureau of Customs (BoC) and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), however, withheld the identities of the suspects due to ongoing operations.
“We cannot divulge their identities and some details because as of this moment, we are conducting an operation,” Customs Intelligence and Investigation Service (CIIS) Chief Col. Neil Estrella said after a press briefer at the NBI Monday.
They only revealed that a syndicate, possibly a mix of Chinese and Filipinos, was the one behind seized 605 kilos of shabu.
“Base sa mga impormasyon na ina-analyze natin, malaking posibilidad na syndicated ito kasi organized ang paggalaw nila,” Estrella said.
Aside from their method of transporting the contrabands into the country, Estrella said they were able to assess that a syndicate is behind the case due to the way the contrabands were hidden.
“Ang pagkakaimpake ng kargamento na ‘to, it took us for hours just to open a very small part of the metal. Without special equipment, it will be hard to open it,” he said.
Estrella explained that the illegal drugs were surreptitiously hidden on a “very thick metal, wrapped with a thick rubber and has wood under the metal.”
He said that the shipment, even subjected for inspection, it will be hard to determine whether it contains contraband unless brought to a laboratory where special tools can be used to open the cargo.
“So kahit physical inspection hindi mo siya makikita,” Estrella said.
With the discovery of such method, Estrella recommended that systems in inspection at the BoC should be adjusted.
The P6-billion shabu was seized in two warehouses in Valenzuela City, where all deliveries from small houses and consignees start, Estrella said.
From the port, the cargo was transported to the brokerage warehouse in Valenzuela and if authorities did not discover it earlier, the drugs would have been delivered house to house. (Betheena Unite)