NBI busts West African drug ring

MANILA, Philippines - National Bureau of Investigation agents arrested recently four members of the West African drug syndicate, including a Filipina, who recruit Filipinos as “drug mules” to deliver several capsules containing about 500 grams of cocaine, during a raid in Angeles City Pampanga.

The drug mules are reportedly paid $2,500 to $3,000 for every trip they make.

NBI Director Nestor Mantaring, during a press conference held at the NBI headquarters in Manila, presented the four arrested suspects identified as Eliza Quiros Dimalanta, Filipina, alias Elisa Coles Quiros, of San Bartolome, Concepcion, Tarlac; and Guinea-Bissau nationals identified as Mazibane Phemelo Cassim, 40; Marcel Bakayoko, 27; and Camara Ibrahima Sekou, 35; all of Room 101 Vitug Apartment, Narciso Street, Malabanas, Angeles City, Pampanga.

The NBI seized from the four arrested suspects two thumb-sized capsules containing 20.0170 grams of cocaine hydrochloride, and instruments used for drug trafficking.

Mantaring said the NBI recommended the filing of charges for violation of RA 9165 (or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002), RA 8042 (Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipinos Act of 1995) and RA 9208 (Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003) against the four suspects before the Angeles City Prosecutor’s office in Pampanga.

The four suspects were detained at the NBI jail in Manila.

The prosecutor recommended no bail for the suspects.

Records showed the suspects were arrested shortly after 4 a.m. on Feb. 12 by the NBI Anti-Drug Task Force headed by Deputy Director for Intelligence Services lawyer Ruel Lasala and Reaction, Arrest and Interdiction Division (RAID) led by Head Agent Roel Bolivar after being intercepted along Narciso Street in Malabanas, Angeles City.

The four suspects were on their way to bring their Filipino recruits, Arnol Glorioso, Benjamin Mendiola and Jinky Cleofe, to the airport at Clark Airbase, Pampanga.

Bound for China

The Filipino recruits were bound for China the following day.

Mantaring said the NBI operation was in response to the increasing number of arrested Filipinos in China, mostly due to drug cases. Mantaring said they have been receiving several complaints that WADS members are recruiting Filipinos to become drug mules to transport cocaine to China, and other Southeast Asian countries, in exchange for a huge some of money.

Reports said Philippine Ambassador to China Sonia Cataumber Brady earlier said that Chinese syndicates continue to use Filipinos as drug mules to smuggle dangerous and prohibited drugs into China. Brady said there are 183 Filipinos, mostly women, languishing in various jails in China due to drug trafficking.

Since 2007, 48 Filipinos have been imposed the death penalty and 26 have received a life sentence for carrying narcotic drugs in China. Among those arrested in 2009 alone, seven have been imposed the death penalty, seven were meted life sentence, while another five received a sentence of at least 15 years imprisonment.

The NBI also got information that some Filipino drug mules are being sent to other countries like Malaysia, Hong Kong and Ecuador. Mantaring said the arrest of the suspects and the rescue of the three Filipinos is part of the NBI’s previous operations called the “Marco Polo 1 and 2,” whose subjects were also WADS members. While the two operations were not in the Philippines, the suspects arrested are WADS members in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. They were arrested by joint operatives of the NBI and the Royal Malaysian Police. Mantaring said they also obtained some of their information about the operations of the drug syndicate from the Department of Foreign Affairs (DOF).

He said one victim, Glorioso, posed as a recruit and acted as an undercover agent for the NBI to establish the transport of cocaine by asking a recruit to swallow the thumb sized capsule loaded with the contraband.

On the other hand, Bolivar said there were instances when a drug mule was hospitalized or even died after the capsulized drug exploded in the stomach.

Bolivar said the drug mule is brought to a hotel or an apartment upon his or her arrival to the foreign country where he will be asked to take some medicines for the discharge of the capsules.