P6.8 million shabu from Malaysia seized in Cebu City

CEBU, Philippines —  A total of P6.8 million worth of shabu were seized by the operatives in a controlled delivery operation in Barangay Cogon Ramos, Cebu City yesterday.

The joint operation of Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA)-7 and Bureau of Customs (BOC) resulted in the arrest of Zoilo Gabas, 22, a resident of the said barangay.

Gabas, who served as the receiver of the delivery, was caught with more or less one kilogram of shabu with an estimated Dangerous Drug Board (DDB) value of P6.8 million.

PDEA-7 agent Jessie Cabutotan said the package which was shipped from Malaysia was already intercepted at the warehouse of a cargo forwarder at the Clark International Airport, which prompted the enforcement of a controlled delivery operation in cooperation with the forwarding company.

The illegal drugs wrapped in a transparent tape were concealed in an air fryer among the three boxes containing frying pans.

“Kinontrol natin ang delivery hanggang ma-receive nung talagang receiver ng package. So yung illegal drugs naka-concealed sa air fyer. Nakita na nila yan sa X-ray sa Clark International Airport,” said Cabutotan.

Controlled delivery is said to be an investigation technique used when a consignment of illicit drugs is detected and allowed to go forward under the control and surveillance of law enforcement officers in order to secure evidence against the organizers of such illicit drug traffic.

Gabas said he was just directed by a detainee inside the Cebu City Jail to receive the package in exchange of P5,000.

Cabutotan believed that the detainee is connected to a big drug syndicate, stressing that it was not the first shipment from the sender to the consignee.

“Sa palagay hindi to first time eh dahil based sa ibinigay na info sa amin, yung history ng shipment, mga pang-apat o pangatlong ano na niya to na delivery sa kanya,” he added.

Daryl Panulaya, Intelligence Officer 1 of BOC, said they were able to suppress the delivery in close coordination with the concerned agencies.

Panulaya urged the couriers or forwarding companies to coordinate with the concerned agencies by allowing them to monitor their warehouses.

“Mo-coordinate lang sad gyud ang mga courier ug mga forwarding companies to allow PDEA-7 or any concerned agency na mo-monitor sa ilang warehouses. And in fact karon gi-require na ang uban nga warehouses nga kinahanglan naa sad silay kaugalingon nga X-ray machine prior to the release, dapat moagi sa gyud sa X-ray para masugpo gyud ni siya,” he added. — GMR (FREEMAN)