PDEA-7 : Seaport, airport interdiction teams’ drug haul makes up bulk of P176M shabu seized since Jan. 1

An airport interdiction unit, made up of different law enforcement agencies, has helped in confiscating 16 kilos of suspected shabu from a South African, who came from a flight from Qatar, on Feb. 1. | Photo screengrabbed from Junard ‘Ahong’ Chan’s Facebook Live

CEBU CITY, Philippines — The drug haul of seaport and airport interdiction teams, which were composed of members of different law enforcement agencies, made up the bulk of the P176 million worth of illegal drugs confiscated in Central Visayas from the period of Jan. 1 to Feb. 17.

Leia Alcantara, PDEA-7 information officer, said that more than half of the P176 million drug haul from that period came from the P120 million worth of illegal drugs confiscated from a foreigner at the Mactan-Cebu International Airport (MCIA) last Feb. 1.

Alcantara was referring to the South African from a flight from Qatar who tried to smuggle in 16 kilos of suspected shabu, which had a market value of P120 million, through the MCIA.

Interdiction unit

“Naa tay gitawag nga mga seaport ug airport interdiction unit. Dugay nani sila established. Naa tay personnel gi-deploy kuyog ani atong mga K9 units, so naa tay iro, naa tay handler, naa tay efforts especially diri sa Cebu Province,” Alcantara said.

(We have what we call seaport and airport interdiction units. These have been already established for quite a while now. We have personnel deployed there together with our K9 units, so we have dogs, we have handlers, we have efforts especially here in Cebu Province.)

She also said that the interdiction teams included operatives of PDEA-7, local police and the National Bureau of Investigation in the region.

Alcantara also cited the illegal drugs transported from Luzon, which were believed to be transported from the commercial ro-ro or roll on-roll off vessels.

She said that the PDEA-7 and the police in the region conducted 27 operations from Jan. 1 to Jan. 17 and including the illegal drugs confiscated at the airport, the drug haul for this period amounted to P176 million or 26 kilos of suspected shabu.

PDEA-7 on new players

She also said that they also arrested 57 drug personalities in these operations and she described these people as new players in the illegal drug trade here.

Alcantara said that this would mean that no big drug groups were operating in the regions these days.

She also said that this development would also mean that there was still a demand for illegal drugs here, which meant that there were still drug users here.

“Ang atoang problema sa demand naa pa, so naa pa gyuy mogamit og illegal nga drugas. Negosyo man gud ning dangerous drugs, as long as naay market, naay willing mopalit naa gyud nay supply,” she added.

(Our problem is demand is still here, so there are still users of illegal drugs. Dangerous drugs is a business, as long as there is a market, there are willing buyers, then there is a supply for them.)

She said that with this, they planned to intensify their anti-illegal drug operations as well as their drug-clearing operations in the barangays.

She was referring to the Badac or the Barangay Anti-Drug Abuse Council which involved coordinating with the barangays and the communities to help them in the anti-illegal drug campaign.

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