PNP: Mexican drug lord's arrest good for Philippines

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine National Police (PNP) expressed relief with the arrest of the legendary leader of a Mexican drug syndicate believed to be also operating in the Philippines.

PNP spokesman Senior Superintendent Theodore Sindac said that the arrest of the "world's most wanted drug lord" Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman of Mexican Sinaloa drug cartel will also benefit the country.

Read: Cellphone, wiretaps led to legendary drug lord

"This will be a major blow to their operation, and that includes here in the Philippines," Sindac said in a radio interview Monday. "We welcome this development."

The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) confirmed the presence of the drug ring when 84 kilos of shabu worth P420 million were seized and three nabbed in a ranch raid in Lipa City, Batangas on Christmas Day last year.

"We have monitored Chinese drug syndicates, then West African drug syndicates. Now we have confirmed that the Mexican Sinaloa drug syndicate has also penetrated the Philippine market," PDEA director general Arturo Cacdac Jr. said in a previous report.

The Sinaloa cartel is reputed to be the largest source of illegal drugs to the United States.

Related: Retired SF cop: Sinaloa drug ring ‘violent, dominating’