Police anti-narcotics operatives seized some P80 million worth of high-grade shabu in a house in Quezon City yesterday.
Officials said a team from the US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) assisted the police Anti-Illegal Drug Special Operation Task Force (AIDSOTF) and the Quezon City Police District (QCPD) in the raid on a house along Romualdez street, BF Homes in Barangay Holy Spirit, but failed to apprehend any suspect.
AIDSOTF commander Chief Superintendent Jefferson Soriano said the supposed occupant of the house, a Chinese national identified as Cheok Mon Lao, was not around during the raid.
Soriano said the raiding lawmen was accompanied by the QCPD under Senior Superintendent Magtanggol Gatdula to serve a search warrant issued by Quezon City Regional Trial Court Branch 81 Judge Teresita Yadao.
But the suspect was not around when the lawmen served the warrant. A search of the entire place yielded 16 kilos of high-grade shabu neatly packed in several plastic bags.
Lawmen also recovered several empty chemical containers and weighing scales.
“We are not sure of the chemicals from the containers but we will look into it,” Soriano said.
Soriano said they are still looking into the possibility that the house is used as a transshipment point of a Chinese drug syndicate operating in the country.
Police learned Cheok was only renting the bungalow and visited only during weekends.
“They (drug suspects) are not permanently staying here because they don’t cook their food here,” one of the DEA agents remarked during the raid.
Lawmen also learned that Cheok was already in his Nissan van on his way to visit the house but hurriedly turned back upon sensing the presence of lawmen.
Neighbors said Cheok and a still unidentified Chinese woman were passing themselves off as husband and wife when they rented the bungalow from owners Francisco and Nida Galema more than a year ago. Police said the Galemas are now residing in Canada.
Another neighbor claimed the Chinese couple seldom stayed at their rented house and when they did, they never stayed long.
She also said that on several occasions, several of them tried to start a conversation with their new neighbors but they were simply snubbed.
She described the Chinese couple as being in their early 40s and obese.
Residents claimed they last saw the couple in the neighborhood three weeks ago.
Soriano said they are now coordinating with the Bureau of Immigration to apprehend the suspects.
According to Soriano, they monitored the place for two weeks but noticed no signs of activity inside the house.
“There are no helpers or maids and the place is always closed,” Soriano said.