Over P2B worth of illegal drugs seized in Pampanga raid

MANILA, Philippines - Anti-narcotics agents of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency arrested four Chinese during a raid on a house and a warehouse in Pampanga, seizing more than P2 billion worth of illegal drugs.

PDEA director general Arturo Cacdac identified the suspects as Jason Barquin Lee, 29; Willy Yap, 26; Near Tan, 26; and YingYing Huang, 27.

Reports said that last September 12, authorities simultaneously raided a warehouse in Greenville Subdivision, Barangay San Jose and a house located at the corner of Rome and Moscow streets, Rich Town Subdivision, Barangay Sindalan, both in San Fernando City, Pampanga.

The raiding team recovered 175 plastic bags containing 174.03 kilos of shabu worth P870 million inside a Mitsubishi Montero, which was parked inside a building named “Big Blue” that was used as a warehouse in Greenville Subdivision.

"Also parked inside the compound was an Isuzu closed van which yielded 20 plastic bags of 9.88 kilos of shabu and 233.81 kilos of ephedrine, with an estimated value of P49.4 million and P81.8 million, respectively,” Cacdac said, adding that operatives also found in one of the rooms 20 green-colored sacks and plastic bottles of almost three kilos of ephedrine and 14 liters of liquid shabu.

Meanwhile, authorities recovered 276 plastic bags of shabu worth P1.383 million on the second floor of a house in Rich Town Subdivision, where Huang was arrested.

During the operation, lawmen also seized 59 plastic bags of white powdery and colored substances, and activated charcoal which also yielded negative results for any presence of dangerous drugs when tested.

“Mere presence of ephedrine, a primary component in the production of shabu, would indicate that the warehouse is a clandestine laboratory. But the absence of equipment could mean that it was transferred somewhere else after the process because of the impurities left behind," Cacdac said.

Cacdac added that the closed van that contains a voluminous amount of ephedrine was an indication that it was supposed to deliver the illegal goods to another facility.

PDEA agents were trying to pinpoint the area where the closed van was supposed to deliver the ephedrine.

The suspects are now facing charges for violation of Section 8 (Manufacture of Dangerous Drugs) and Section 11 (Possession of Dangerous Drugs), Article II of Republic Act 9165, or The Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002, before the Office of the Assistant State Prosecutor, National Prosecution Service, Department of Justice.

They are now detained at PDEA Jail Facility in Quezon City.