Top cop confirms Mexican drug group presence in Phl

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine National Police on Thursday confirmed the presence of a Mexican drug cartel in the country after the raid on a ranch in Batangas where 84 kilos of shabu were seized by operatives.

PNP chief Director General Alan Purisima said his men are now probing how the Mexican drug ring was able to enter the country.

"It is part of our investigation how the cartel was able to
penetrate our country. So we are still in the process of determining what is the history behind the arrest of these people," Purisima told a press briefing at the PNP national headquarters in Camp Crame, Quezon City.

Purisima said among the possibility being investigated is that the drug ring sneaked into the country by  using the backdoor in the southernmost part of the Philippines.

"We are 7,000 islands. If you go down South you can
freely go to Sabah (Malaysia). Kung minsan hindi ka na kailangan pa magdaan sa immigration. Doon ka lang sa kabilang island dadaan makakapunta ka na. Sasakay ka lang ng bangka. Sa mga pier natin there were reports before that containers were not opened, not checked so we have suspicions but we do not have evidence.

"So there are so many ways of transporting drugs into our country and...sometimes we have seen laboratories being set up in different parts of the country," the PNP chief said.

He added that the members of the Mexican drug group could have some partnership with the Chinese drug operators in the Philippines to establish some contacts and eventually do business.

"Meron na silang pakialam doon sa mga Chinese kung titingnan mo pangalan ginamit Chinese. Meron na silang collusion syempre doon sila nag uumpisa. Partnership. Ako magfifinance ikaw magtatrabaho and then bandang huli maghihiwalay na yan.

"So it is a process ngayon na nakikita natin na nagsisimula pa lang sila. Kailangan aksyunan natin agad para hindi na tuluyang makapasok," Purisma said.

Meanwhile,  Senior Superintendent Bartolome Tobias, Anti- Illegal Drugs Special Operations Task Force chief, said his unit had received reports of the presence of the Mexican drug cartel operating in the country.

"We have previous reports that the Mexicans are here...This is the first time  that we have confirmed the Mexicans are already here," he said.