BY BETHEENA UNITE
Almost a kilo of kush marijuana was found in a parcel declared to contain coffee packs at Port of Clark, the Bureau of Customs said Saturday.
Instead of only coffee, t-shirts, and book bag, a total of 980 grams of kush marijuana valued around P1.1 million was also discovered inside the parcel.
According to the bureau, the contraband that came from California was stuffed in three plastic packs and concealed in imported coffee packs.
The shipment arrived at the port on Sept. 8 and was examined on September 11, revealing suspicious images, prompting Customs officers to open the parcel.
“During physical examination, the Customs examiner closely noticed the sweet aroma of coffee beans prompting him to open the same considering that it is unusual to produce a smell when they are sealed and packed,” District Collector Ruby Alameda said.
The shipment was then subjected to K-9 sniffing while samples were taken for the conduct of laboratory testing and chemical analysis which later confirmed the presence of marijuana, a dangerous drug under R.A. 9165 or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.
A warrant of seizure and detention was issued on September 15 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 and was turned over to the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency on September 18. (Betheena Unite)
