BY CALVIN CORDOVA
CEBU CITY— Anti-narcotics operatives found on Sunday packs of suspected shabu worth P81.6 million in a warehouse of a cargo forwarding company here.
Agents of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) in Central Visayas (PDEA 7) and Police Drug Enforcement Group Central Visayas (PDEG) found the huge amount of illegal drugs while conducting a routine inspection of warehouses.
PDEA 7 regional director Levi Ortiz said as the K9 unit inspected the items of a warehouse, one of the drug-sniffing canines sat on a box.
“The dog sitting on the box was an indication that there was a contraband inside,” said Ortiz.
Three boxes were then sent to Pier 3 for an x-ray inspection.
When scanned, it was found that the three boxes contained organic substance, Ortiz.
Further inspection showed that each of the three boxes contained a light-emitting diode (LED) spotlight.
It was later found out that four big packs of suspected shabu were stuffed inside of each spotlight.
The 12 packs of suspected illegal drugs were wrapped with tea bags with Chinese markings.
Ortiz said the PDEA 7 is withholding the identities of the shipper and the consignee of the shipment pending further investigation.
The discovery of the illegal drugs in the warehouse came after a driver of a food delivery service was caught possessing a kilo of shabu worth P6.8 million.
Eranes Baltazar Jr., 40, was arrested in a buy-bust operation in Barangay Sambag 1, Cebu City last Saturday.
Ortiz said PDEA-7 placed Baltazar under surveillance for about two weeks before he was arrested.
Baltazar denied owning the illegal drugs. He said he did not know that the item he was supposed to deliver contained shabu.(Calvin D. Cordova)
