BY BETHEENA UNITE
Close to a thousand pieces of ecstasy tablets worth P1.6 million were recently found in a shipment of an air humidifier at the Port of Clark, the Bureau of Customs said Friday.
A total of 988 pieces of ecstasy tablets and unidentified broken pieces were discovered in a parcel shipped from Milton Keynes, United Kingdom. It arrived at the Port of Clark last September 1 and was only declared as “air humidifier.”
According to the bureau, the shipment was subjected to non-intrusive examination that revealed images of various tablets similar to that of the previously apprehended ecstasy.
This prompted Customs officers to conduct physical examination on the shipment which later yielded an air humidifier and 988 pieces of tablets in assorted colors.
Samples were then taken for laboratory testing and chemical analysis which confirmed the presence of “ecstasy”, a dangerous drug listed under R.A. No. 9165 or The Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.
A warrant of seizure and detention was issued on September 2 against the shipment for violation of Sections 118 (g), 119 (d) and 1113 (f), (i) & (l) of R.A. No. 10863 or the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act (CMTA) in relation to R.A. No. 9165.
The shipment was already turned over to Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency for proper disposition, Port of Clark District Collector Ruby Alameda said.
“To date, this is the 18th shipment of illegal drugs that the Port of Clark has seized and in sum, over P34-million worth of prohibited drugs such as marijuana and ecstasy were seized by the port this year,” Alameda added.
