PDEA-6 monitors mail-order drugs

ILOILO CITY, Philippines — Illegal drug distributors have apparently turned to the old-fashioned way of sending contrabands by mail.

The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency-6 confirmed that it has been monitoring several people who were reported to be recipients of mail-order illegal drugs, particularly methamphetamine hydrochloride or shabu.

Yogi Filemon Ruiz, PDEA-6 director, admitted that his men have difficulty tracking down the mail addressees because they changed very often.

“Iba-iba ‘yung mga taong pinapadalhan. While these drug dealers employed the age-old way of sending parcels, they have been innovative on how to do it. They also improved packaging and delivery so that authorities could not detect it,” he said.

Ruiz however said PDEA-6 has continuously been conducting operations against mail-order drugs for almost a year already, and set up linkages with various couriers operating in Western Visayas. Deployment of K-9 units to check mail parcels were also set up in several areas, he said.

PDEA-6 said it had received three reports of mail-order illegal drugs sent in the region. “Pero ‘yung dalawa, na-i-deliver na when we received the information,” he said, while the one was in Caticlan in Malay, Aklan last July when the agency seized almost P1 million worth of shabu, intended for Boracay distribution.

PDEA-6 operatives arrested Jona-Gin Liba, 20, a native of San Fernando City, La Union and her live-in partner, Alexander Nebres, 38, of Pasay City.

When collared at the Caticlan Airport, the couple was in possession of three big sachets of suspected shabu weighing around 70 grams.

The operation against the two suspects was a controlled delivery. All along, PDEA-6 knew that a drug supply has passed through the cargo at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) and was bound for Boracay Island. The baggage a box with three radio speakers inside–arrived and Liba claimed it.

Last week, the Bureau of Customs recovered some 15 grams of shabu mailed to a post office in Makati City. Wrapped in tissue paper and placed in an envelope, the illegal drugs was claimed to be a pendant and allegedly came from the United Kingdom. - THE FREEMAN