P40B in drugs seized in the last 3 years, says PDEA

First posted 03:17pm (Mla time) July 27, 2005
By Joel Francis Guinto
INQ7.net


IN THE three years since its activation in 2002, the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) has seized 39.86 billion pesos worth of illegal drugs, equipment and paraphernalia, its director said Wednesday.

During the period from July 30,2002 to June 30, 2005, the PDEA also dismantled 30 clandestine drug laboratories and 21 warehouses, arrested 76,455 suspects and filed 51,213 cases before the courts, undersecretary Anselmo Avenido said.

Methamphetamine hydrochloride or "shabu" accounted for the bulk of the seized drugs, worth 15,405,161,080 pesos, followed by marijuana and its derivatives with a haul worth 2,754,563,797 pesos, Avenido said in a report released during the PDEA's third anniversary.

Of the arrested suspects during the three-year period, 180 were foreign nationals, he said.

Avenido warned that international drug syndicates are using the country as a production center for "ketamine," a drug for racehorses that is being used as a substitute for "shabu" and ecstasy.

He lamented that an order of from the Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB) classifying ketamine as an illegal drug had not taken effect. Without this directive, suspects caught with or producing the drug are given lighter penalties under law.

In an interview with reporters, Avenido said the PDEA is pushing for revisions to Republic Act 4200 or the Anti-Wiretapping Law to give them the authority to bug telephone lines of suspected drug lords.

"We are confident Congress will support us in this matter," he said.

Avenido noted that at present, the PDEA depends on surveillance from its Chinese counterparts on drug rings in their country to track their operatives in the Philippines.
-----

Maybe it's about time we have another Lim Seng as an example? :armytwisted:

Two suspected drug dealers fall in foiled P2-M shabu sale in city


By RIZAL S. OBANIL

Agents of the Manila Police District (MPD) confiscated some 1.5 kilos of shabu estimated to be worth P2 million from two suspected drug peddlers who were about to conclude a shabu sale over the weekend.

The arrest of the suspects was revealed yesteday by MPD director Chief Supt. Pedro E. Bulaong who presented the two yesterday to the media. They were identified as Abdulnassif Olama, 26, single, a vendor living in Quiapo, Manila; and Maila Olama, 28, married, also a vendor of Quiapo.

The two were arrested by members of the MPD Anti-Illegal Drugs Special Operations Task Group (AIDSOTF) about 8:30 a.m. last July 23 along España St. near corner A. Maceda St., Sampaloc, Manila.

The MPD received an information that a drug deal would take place along España St. near the corner of A. Maceda St. After the information was verified, the anti-drug police team immediately set up an operation to arrest the suspects.

While the police officers were strategically positioned along the place, a maroon Honda Civic car with license plate UPT 687 was spotted, with the two suspects on board the car.

One of the suspects apparently noticed the presence of police agents and immediately threw a wrapped paper, which turned out to be a plastic sachet containing a crystalline substance suspected to be shabu.

However, the driver of the vehicle, who saw the arrest of the suspects, sped away and escaped arrest.

The MPD agents likewise found 29 pieces of self-sealing transparent plastics containing a crystalline substance in the abandoned vehicle. The driver was later identified through an ID card as Gani Macadaya.

The two suspects are now detained at the MPD headquarters facing criminal charges in violation of the Republic Act 9165.
-----

To the Manilla's Finest! :ssalute:

Shabu cache in 3 QC homes

By DJ Yap
Inquirer News Service

Editor's Note: Published on Page A21 of the July 30, 2005 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer

SIMULTANEOUS raids in three houses in Quezon City yesterday yielded almost P150 million worth of “shabu,” or metamphetamine hydrochloride, and ephedrine, an ingredient for making the so-called poor man’s cocaine.

Six Chinese caretakers of one of the three houses were arrested, narcotics agents said.

Seized during the raid were 65 kilos of shabu worth about P131 million, and 500 kilos of ephedrine, worth some P14.5 million, said Anti-Illegal Drugs Special Operations Task Force (Aidsotf) chief Ricardo De Leon.

Fifty kilos of shabu and 20 crates of ephedrine were discovered at 12-B Liwayway St., Barangay West Triangle, while 11 more kilos of shabu were found at nearby 19-C Bulletin St., De Leon said. Another five kilos were seized at Rest Heaven corner Baler St.

----
:wow: 2 days in a row! :ssalute:
It's about time we deal with these Chinese drug lords. In China, in a weeks time, they'll be executed in public. Period!

Legislation to amend the existing laws should be done to have death penalty to be meted out to druglords.

I only knew of one instance during the Marcos time that a chinese druglord was executed by a firing squad.

Now it's high time to bring it back as a good deterrence. :snipemo: :fire: :thumb:

Drug suspect slain, cop hurt in gun battle

By JAMES I. CATAPUSAN

A Parañaque policeman was wounded and a suspected member of a drug syndicate was killed in a shootout between policemen and members of the syndicate during a drug-sting operation late Friday afternoon in the city.

A Parañaque policeman was wounded and a suspected member of a drug syndicate was killed in a shootout between policemen and members of the syndicate during a drug-sting operation late Friday afternoon in the city.

In another incident, four Parañaque policemen were arrested for robbery-extortion during an entrapment operation Saturday night.

Parañaque police chief Supt. Ronald Estilles identified the wounded policeman as PO2 Jimmy Reginaldo, assigned at the Special Operations Group (SO) of the local police force. He suffered a bullet wound in his right forearm and was rushed to a nearby hospital.

Killed during the shootout was Benjamin Capoquian, 41, of Sta. Ana Drive, Bgy. Sun Valley, Parañaque City. He suffered multiple gunshot wounds in the neck and body and died upon arrival at the Parañaque Community Hospital.

Arrested were six other drug suspects identified as Rolando Ayag, a.k.a. Bong, 25; Abet Montebon, a.k.a. Nguso, 21; Prudencio Capoquian, a.k.a. Prudy, 31; Emily Atibagos, 35; Vilma Ortiz, 32; all residents of Sta. Ana Drive, Bgy. Sun Valley, Parañaque City; and Mario Antonilla, 24, of 4081 Culdesac St., Bgy. Sun Valley, in the city.

Investigation disclosed that the incident happened at about 5 p.m. along Sta. Ana Drive, Bgy. Sun Valley, Parañaque City.

Long before the incident, Estilles said his men received information that the suspects were engaged in the illegal drugs trade in the area. The Parañaque police conducted surveillance operation for almost a month.

The surveillance operation gained positive results. Police then conducted a buy-bust operation with PO2 Edwin Clupino acting as the poseur-buyer.

After Clupino handed over the P1,000 marked money to Capoquian, he flashed a pre-arranged signal to his police backup group.
Sensing trouble, Capoquian drew his gun and fired at the lawmen, hitting Reginaldo in his right forearm.

The policemen returned fire, leading to a firefight which lasted almost an hour.

The suspects eventually surrendered to police, leaving a bloodied Capoquian lying on the ground.

Recovered from the suspects were 37 heat-sealed plastic sachets of shabu, two baby Armalite rifles, one shotgun, two Uzi machine pistols, one .22 caliber revolver, two .38 caliber revolvers, two .45 caliber pistols and one hand grenade.

Charges of violation of Republic Act 9165, otherwise known as anti-drugs law, illegal possession of firearms and ammunition, and frustrated homicide were filed against the suspects who are now temporarily detained at the Parañaque police station investigation division cell.

Meanwhile, Parañaque police arrested four of its own men for robbery/extortion. Arrested were SPO4 Dante Mijares, PO3 Dennis Michael Duran, PO3 Rolando Ty, and PO1 Boots Radita, all members of the Regional Special Action Force (RSAU).

Estilles said the four were arrested at about 7:30 p.m. Saturday at the passenger jeepney terminal located at Multinational Village, Bgy. Moonwalk, Parañaque City.

The suspects’ arrest came following a complaint filed by Alfredo Buenaobra, a jeepney driver, president of the Multinational Transport Cooperative, and a resident of Purok 7, Multinational Village, Bgy. Moonwalk, Parañaque City.

According to Buenaobra, he has been receiving complaints from the members of the cooperative regarding the extortion activities of the four policemen, forcing him, being the leader of the transport group, to seek assistance from the police.

:wow: That's a lot of firepower! Kudos to the Parañaque Cops :ssalute:

To the arrested RSAU, Kutos gusto nyo? Training, wasted. :bs:

Drugbusters turn down P.3-M bribe
By Cecille Suerte Felipe
The Philippine Star 10/08/2005

By keeping their hands clean, they kept their dignity intact.

This was how Metro police chief Director Vidal Querol described the recent actions of police anti-drug operatives, who turned down P300,000, which was offered as a bribe by relatives of four men earlier arrested for peddling illegal drugs.

Querol commended Superintendent Jerry Valeroso, chief of the Regional Anti-Illegal Drugs-Special Operations Task Force (RAID-SOTF) and his men for not being blinded by the luster of money.

"We are proud of these officers and men of the RAID-SOTF for keeping their hands clean by resisting the bribe offer and for keeping the dignity of the police service intact," Querol said.

Valeroso and his men arrested Hadji Racma, 30 and Datu Raiz Cadir, both of Taguig, for offering P300,000 in exchange of the release of their four relatives, who were arrested on suspicion of being drug dealers.

Querol said the bribery attempt took place inside the RAID-SOTF office at around 2:20 a.m. yesterday.

Instead of taking the bribe, Valeroso and his men arrested the two for interceding on behalf of Jessie Macalnas, 23; Taya Macalnas, 24; Althon Kunakon, 22; and Ebrahim Ambalgan, 43, who were nabbed last Wednesday along the South Luzon Expressway in Calamba City for illegal drugs.

Querol said Jessie Macalnas had a pending application with the PNP while Ambalgan was reportedly a member of the Moro National Liberation Front.

Querol said charges or bribery were filed against Racma and Cadir while violation of the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act were filed against the four.

http://www.philstar.com/philstar/news200510086301.htm

50 kilos of marijuana seized from cargo ship
By Non Alquitran And Edu Punay
The Philippine Star 10/14/2005

Anti-drug agents claimed to have busted a syndicate behind the smuggling of marijuana to Germany and other European countries following the arrest of three men and the recovery of almost 50 kilos of died marijuana leaves from a vessel anchored near Manila Bay’s breakwater near the mouth of the Pasig River.The Philippine Coast Guard are now conducting search and retrieval operations for at least four more bags containing an estimated 200 kilos marijuana, which were thrown out of the M/V Xingang when drug agents boarded the ship.

Director Marcelo Ele Jr., head of the police Anti-Illegal Drugs Special Operations Task Force (AID-SOTF) identified the arrested suspects as Wilhem Papa, Angelito Estores and Manuel Baroga.

Papa is a crewman of the German-registered Xingang while Estores and Baroga are security guards manning the gate of South Harbor’s Pier 4.

Ele said combined elements of AID-SOTF, Manila Police District, Coast Guard and Bureau of Customs arrived at Pier 4 shortly after midnight.

Customs Commissioner Alexander Arevalo said their Pier and Inspection Division (PID) received reports that marijuana leaves were being loaded into a ship that came from Indonesia.

PID chief Gerry Macatangay immediately sought the help of the Coast Guard, who provided agents with a cutter to intercept the vessel.

"This is the result of close coordination between government agencies in the campaign against illegal shipments," Arevalo said.

At least five traveling bags were being loaded from a banca when the agents announced the raid at 12:22 a.m.

Superintendent Arnold Aguilar, head of the Special Operations Group of AID-SOTF, said someone cut the rope being used to hoist the bags, which then plunged into Manila Bay.

Aguilar said one traveling bag, containing a total of 46.535 kilos of dried marijuana leaves, was in the possession of Papa. The suspect later led government agents to Estores and Baroga, both of the South Port Security and Protection Agency.

The three were turned over to the custody of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency.

"We are digging deeper into the syndicate’s operation abroad so we can provide our foreign counterparts with vital information," Aguilar said.

Aguilar said a kilo of marijuana sells for P20,000.

The AID-SOTF official said the Xingang arrived in the country last Wednesday night from the port of Suraya in Indonesia to unload cargo. It was scheduled to leave for Singapore today before proceeding to the port of Hamburg in Germany.

Initial investigation showed that the ship’s other crew members were not aware of the syndicate’s illegal operations, one AIDSOTF official said.

http://www.philstar.com/philstar/news200510146301.htm

Joint operations paved the way! :thumb:

P500-M marijuana plantation found, destroyed by cops in Nueva Vizcaya

By BINGO CADABONA

BAYOMBONG, Nueva Vizcaya — A vast marijuana plantation, which police valued at about R500 million, was discovered and later burned by authorities in a remote mountain village here early Monday morning.

Newly installed provincial police director Senior Supt. Rogelio Damazo said that his operatives burned the approximately three-hectare farm planted to more than 500,000 marijuana plants in an area at the boundary of the towns of Dupax Del Sur and Alfonso Castañeda.

Damazo said that the existence of the R500-million plantation, so far the biggest discovery of such kind in this land-locked province, was tipped off to them by villagers.

After several days of surveillance operations, elements of the provincial police mobile group, togethe with Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency operatives, PO3 Dexter Divad and PO2 Crisanto Jasmin Jr., went to the area.

The plantation, said SPO3 Anselmo Dulin of the provincial police intelligence office, who also took part in the operation, is some four hours of nonstop uphill climb thorough mountain trails and ridges or about four kilometers from the nearest road.

After an inventory, the operatives, on orders of Damazo, burned the plants, bringing with them only a truckload of high-grade fully grown marijuana plants to the provincial police office for evidence in filing a case against those responsible for the establishment of the plantation.

The police, however, failed to arrest any suspect. But Damazo said they would not stop investigating until these "marijuana growers" are identified.

"The illegal plants were at their different stages. Some were already harvestable, half-grown, while on those other plots, the plants were just newly planted," Damazo said.

He also said that the plantation, which was well managed, might have been in existence for many years.

The prohibited plants, he said, would be presented to provincial officials led by Gov. Luisa Lloren Cuaresma next week.

"This is a major accomplishment not only of the provincial police or of the entire Philippine National Police but, foremost, of our common relentless efforts to fight the drug menace," said Damazo, who was assigned here earlier this month.

http://www.mb.com.ph/PROV2006022357006.html

North Cemetery drug den raided

By Nestor Etolle
The Philippine Star 04/25/2006

Some 45 plastic sachets of shabu with an estimated street value of more than P200,000 and various drug paraphernalia were seized by police during a raid at a suspected drug den inside the North Cemetery in Sta. Cruz, Manila yesterday morning.

The raid also resulted in the arrest of five persons, four of them women, who allegedly served as maintainers of the concealed drug den, which could only be accessed through a maze of tombs and mausoleums.

The raiders had to use an acetylene torch and bolt cutter in order to gain entry into the drug den, which had a steel door and three surveillance cameras.

"The place is well-secured. Nobody could gain entry unless properly identified. The police only managed to discover the drug den when its maintainers panicked during the raid," Sta. Cruz police station chief Superintendent Romulo Sapitula said.

He said the raiders had to crawl through a maze of tombs in order to reach the drug den located at 29th street inside the North Cemetery. A concerned citizen tipped off Sapitula of the presence of the drug den.

The subject of the raid were certain a Bong and Boy Zapanta, the alleged drug den owners. Both managed to elude the raiding team.

The raid was conducted on the strength of search warrants 06-9418 and 06-9419 issued by a Manila court. Barangay officials and media men witnessed the raid.

Also seized during the raid were 38 pieces of hand-rolled aluminum foil, four disposable lighters, one transparent glass container, three surveillance cameras, a pair of scissors, a glass tooter and an improvised burner.

The arrested alleged drug maintainers were identified as Marissa Rañoco, 30; Rebecca Zapata, 42; Anna May Zapata, 23; Randy Sabado, 18; and two minor girls.

Charges of violation of the anti-illegal drugs law were filed against the suspects.

Yesterday’s raid followed last Saturday’s raid in drug-affected barangays in Quiapo, where some 75 persons were picked up for record verification.

Seven individuals turned out to have pending criminal records.

Sapitula said more raids will be conducted on several identified drug-affected barangays as part of the police ongoing drive to neutralize drug offenders and arrest members of drug syndicates in order to make Manila barangays drug free.

http://www.philstar.com/philstar/NEWS200604256301.htm

Tipped-off? Anyway good job on the raiding team :thumb:

World narcotics body adopts RP resolution on ketamine

By Pia Lee Brago
The Philippine Star 05/02/2006

The Vienna-based Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) has adopted a resolution sponsored by the Philippines and Thailand calling for a more stringent international regulation of ketamine, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said yesterday.

Philippine Ambassador to Vienna Linglingay Lacanlale said the two countries have called on governments around the world to effect legislation and other measures to control the use of ketamine, citing the widespread abuse of the substance in Asia and the US.

The Philippine Embassy in Vienna concurrently serves as the Philippine Mission to the United Nations Office in that city, which specializes in combating crime and the drug problem.

The widespread use of ketamine in Asia and the US has already caught the attention of the International Narcotics Control Board and the World Health Organization.

Ketamine is frequently used in medicine as an anesthetic and analgesic. A dissociative anesthetic, it was developed as an alternative to other agents which more easily engendered hallucinogenic effects and seizures and depressed the respiratory and circulatory systems. Higher dosages of ketamine, however, have been known to cause hallucinatory effects, and the compound has also increasingly been abused because of this property.

In her report to the DFA, Lacanlale said the Philippines was among the first countries to recognize the dangers posed by the substance and call for its control.

The Dangerous Drugs Board issued Board Regulation 3 on July 19, 2005, mandating the inclusion of ketamine in the Philippines’ list of dangerous drugs, It subjected ketamine to all regulatory and control measures provided under the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.

At the annual meeting of the Heads of National Drug Law Enforcement Agencies held in Vietnam in November last year, then Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency director general Undersecretary Anselmo Avenido Jr. reported on the rising incidence of ketamine abuse and urged other governments to declare ketamine as a regulated substance without delay.

Apart from calling on governments to put the substance under control, the Philippine-Thai resolution also encouraged the international community to develop a system of import-export certificates to guard against diversion and trafficking.

The resolution also urged governments to share information on ketamine abuse and trafficking.

At the time of the resolution’s adoption by the CND, 20 other countries, including Colombia, Japan, Malaysia, and the US co-sponsored the resolution.

http://www.philstar.com/philstar/NEWS200605026304.htm

RP-US narcs’ training set in Davao City

By Edith Regalado
The Philippine Star 05/05/2006

DAVAO CITY — The US Drug Enforcement Agency and its local counterpart, the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency, are set to hold the third "Baker Piston" joint training on combating illegal drugs here on May 8.

Wilkins Villanueva, the PDEA’s Southern Mindanao chief, said the four-week training will be attended by PDEA agents and 40 personnel of the Philippine National Police, Armed Forces, and National Bureau of Investigation.

Villanueva said the two previous "Baker Piston" training exercises resulted in the dismantling last year of a large-scale drug syndicate operating a major shabu laboratory in Southern Mindanao.

Similar Baker Piston exercises were also held in the cities of Baguio and Zamboanga.

The training here will be conducted at the regional training center of the Philippine Public Safety College in Barangay Mintal.

http://www.philstar.com/philstar/NEWS200605059905.htm

4 Manila cops arrested in drug operation

By Joel Guinto, Luige A. del Puerto
Inquirer, INQ7.net

FOUR policemen were arrested in a tension-filled drug bust operation in Manila's Tondo district on Thursday, officials said.

The four men, who turned out to be officers of the Manila Police District's anti-illegal drugs unit, were caught selling three million pesos worth of "shabu" [methamphetamine hydrochloride] to undercover agents, said Superintendent Benjamin delos Santos, Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) spokesman.

PO1 Erwin Castro, PO2 Jonathan Ruiz, PO3 Mike Fabian Ongapuco, and another policeman, identified only as Dranreb Cipriano were collared on the corner of J. Abad Santos and Hermosa Streets at around 12 p.m., said Delos Santos.

They claimed to be conducting a legitimate anti-narcotics operation, but could not produce papers to back their claim and were not accompanied by any official, according to Chief Inspector Rodel Pastor.

Pastor, a CIDG officer in Central Luzon, said an informant had tipped off the CIDG that drugs being peddled in Central Luzon were coming from Manila. The asset managed to get the suspected pushers to meet with him at the parking area of a fast-food chain.

The deal was worth 3.6 million pesos of drugs.

A three-hour standoff erupted after a Manila Police District (MPD) official refused to yield the suspects to the arresting team, composed of joint operatives of the CIDG and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA).

The two police teams almost faced off, sources said.

The suspects were brought to the Manila Police District (MPD) headquarters, awaiting transfer to Camp Crame, said Felix Vargas, CIDG public information officer.

http://news.inq7.net/breaking/index.php?in...&story_id=75451

This was what I was worried about. LGU's and local PNP units are requesting Crame based Units to seek permission first before going into operations in their turfs. But what if some of them were involved?

The real root of the problem here is non-adherrence to Standing Orders pertaining to SOP and poor implementation in observing the right protocol between and among sector operations. ( I hate to mention illegal activities and dereliction of duty)

Govt agents seize P160-M ephedrine in Quiapo

Anti-narcotics agents on Thursday confiscated P160-million worth of ephedrine from two suspected dealers during a bust in Quiapo, Manila, ABS-CBN News learned.

Authorities identified the suspects as Samsodin Pamantar and Romeo Alac. The two are believed to be accomplices of police Inspector Roderick Baguno, one of the officers in the P1.6-billion ephedrine haul in Quezon City last year.

The raid was conducted by agents of the National Bureau of Investigation and Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency after receiving word that a dealer is willing to sell two sacks of ephedrine for P1.5 million. The dealer, identified only as "Omar," said he has more ephedrine in a warehouse on Globo de Oro Street.

Lawyer Ruel Lasala, NBI director for Metro Manila, said investigators believe the evidence seized was taken from the evidence pilfered by Baguno in June 2005.

Pamantar and Alac said Baguno supplied the ephedrine. A manhunt has been launched for Baguno.

Ephedrine is a chemical used as a main ingredient in manufacturing shabu.

http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/storypage.aspx?StoryID=41130

Another case of recycling :headbang:

There are some murky circumstances on how Baguno was able to pilfer these evidences in the first place that ended up being marketed.

If Baguno is a property custodian responsible to those items he pilfered at the time it was alleged to have been discovered pilfered, then no other accountabilities can be questioned except for some sort of command responsibility of those around it's perimeters.

But, if he was not the property custodian, then on how he manage to steal the evidence without any involvement by other officers, is a million dollar quizz.

It's a disgrace and unfortunate when seized evidence end up re-marketed, and seized in another raid. But it has to be proven yet whether those items were part of Baguno's loot.

GMA orders transfer of PNP anti-drug functions to PDEA

By Aurea Calica
The Philippine Star 06/20/2006

President Arroyo ordered yesterday the transfer of anti-drug functions of the Philippine National Police (PNP) to the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA).

Mrs. Arroyo said the PDEA will receive additional funding from the $21-million Millennium Challenge Account from the United States and a P1-billion counterpart fund allotted to fight corruption.

Budget Secretary Rolando Andaya said the illegal drug trade could only flourish if the proceeds were used for grease money and protection from officials.

Corruption among government officials could be licked as well, he added.

Mrs. Arroyo earlier announced plans to make the PDEA the sole agency engaged in the anti-drug campaign after the police raided a shabu "tiangge" in Pasig City last March.

She has called on the PDEA to "cripple" the illegal drugs industry.

Based on previous reports, the PDEA was envisioned as a civilian law enforcement agency to avoid lumping it in with the police force, where some scalawags have been linked to illegal drugs.

The PDEA is to be manned, not by law enforcers alone, but by people with varied backgrounds as well, such as lawyers, finance experts and psychologists.

It was placed under the Office of the President, although its headquarters are temporarily at Camp Crame, the PNP general headquarters in Quezon City.

The agency was patterned after the United States Drug Enforcement Administration.

PDEA’s personnel include members of the dissolved PNP narcotics unit, the National Bureau of Investigation and the Bureau of Customs who, while operating for PDEA, are still stationed with their mother units.

The PDEA relies on the PNP’s anti-drug task forces at the city and municipal levels.

It also gets help from the Intelligence Service of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.

http://www.philstar.com/philstar/NEWS200606200416.htm

New Agency, same story, hohummm.

PDEA loses P21-M worth of shabu to thieves

The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency has lost seven kilos of "shabu" (methamphetamine crystals) with a street value of P21 million, the agency's chief said Monday.

Director General Dionisio Santiago said that a custodian discovered the shabu missing at around 4 a.m. Monday. He said an initial investigation estimated that the theft occurred between 9 p.m. Sunday and 12:30 a.m. Monday.

Santiago said the shabu was taken from PDEA's evidence room in Quezon City. The evidence was among those seized during a Bureau of Customs operation three years ago, he added.

Santiago said that several PDEA personnel are now being investigated to determine if the theft was an inside job.

http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/storypage.aspx?StoryId=48004

:headbang:

Inside job iyan! :headbang:

madali naman mahuli iyan, subject everybody in lie detector test.

Polygraph test is the only option to establlish inside job.

The problem is, if some of them would fail the test, still they cannot be prosecuted relying only the result of the Polygraph test because it is inadmissible as evidence in court.

However, it can be utilize as a guide for the convenience of the investigation if they can explore solid and relevant circumstancial facts to support it.

Or further dig deeper and deeper until the investigation can establish the right connecting link to pin them down so that a massive clean-up in that department will eventually take place.

P120M worth of shabu seized in Aurora raid

By Tetch Torres
INQ7.net
Last updated 04:21pm (Mla time) 08/31/2006

ABOUT 120 million pesos’ worth of illegal drug shabu was seized by antinarcotics agents during a raid at a clandestine laboratory Wednesday in Aurora province north of Manila.

Operatives from the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) arrested Zi Qu, Ong Tua Ti, Zhin na and Xian Tian.

Initial investigation showed that the shabu laboratory had been operating in Dingalan town’s Butas na Bato village since June, NBI Director Nestor Mantaring said.

Around 30 kilos of liquid and crystal shabu (methamphetamine hydrochloride) were confiscated along with manufacturing equipment like mixer gas stoves, funnels, cooking kettles, iodine crystals, sodium hydroxide and alcohol.

Mantaring said the presence of mixer, boxes of red phosphorous, hydrochloric acid and fumes hood indicated that another shabu laboratory was about to be set up in the area.

Criminal charges are being prepared against the four, he said.

http://newsinfo.inq7.net/breakingnews/metr...rticle_id=18294

Nice teamwork! :thumb:

WHO WERE BEHIND THE DISAPPEARANCE OF SHABU FROM THE PDEA?

WELL, GUESS WHO?

2 Opisyal ng PDEA Timbog sa Droga
Abante Tonite
Sept, 19, 2006

Arestado ang 2 opisyal ng Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency o PDEA at dalawa pa nitong gwardiya ng magdeliver sana ng 120 gramo ng shabu sa isang shopping mall sa Quezon City kahapon.

Kinilala ni PDEA Director General Dionisio Santiago ang mga nasakote na sina Supt. Jerome Mutia, Inspector Jofredo Padillo at mga guwardiyang sina Boyet Fernandez at Jean Granada na tumayong testigo matapos nitong iturong mastermind ang dalawang opisyal.

Lumalas sa imbestigasyon na isinagawa ni Santiago na pasado alas-5:30 ng hapon, nakatanggap sila ng tip mula sa sumukong si Granada na magdedeliber ng 120 gramo ng shabu ang grupo ni Munia sa SM Fairview sa Quezon City.

Kaagad namang rumesponde sa lugar ang Special Enforcement Team ng PDEA at naaresto and mga suspek.

Nabatid na sangkot umano ang mga suspek sa pagkawala ng pitong kilo ng shabu sa taggapan mismo ng PDEA noong Agosto 21, 2006. Dito na minanmanan ng PDEA ang mga suspek na unti-unti raw binebenta ang mga naipuslit nilang shabu.

Samantala, tinutugis naman ng PDEA ang isa pa nilang kasamahan na nakilalang si Supt. Gustavo Torres na kasalakuyang umanong nagtatago at isang dating PO1 Avelino Pedro na sangkot din umano sa pagkawala ng droga sa kaniang tanggapan.

.......................


Hanep! DALAWANG SUPERINTENDENT AT ISANG INSPEKTOR NG PDEA MISMO! :headbang:

Anu na kaya kung ganun kagahaman sila eh panu pa kaya yung mas maliit sweldo sa kanila?

tsk tsk tsk.. Dapat talaga super bigat parusa sa kanila para di tularan.

More power to drug enforcement police agencies!

Not only power but more teeth, especially to their own kind

PDEA chief: More agents involved in drug dealing

I just hope that they do act on tips they received from civilians. sad is sometimes they protect fellow men in uniform. :bs:

I know a drug pusher who wants to stop his trade, but could not do it because the police are asking more money for him almost everyday.

He told me me he is willing to change his life and go back to his province but the police would not let him. He has no savings even after years of trading shabus for hundreds of millions of pesos. His Van was confiscated, I doubt if that van would be log in as evidence.



The heartless policeman confiscated his 25 inches TV that he bought for his mother.

text PNP 2920, e-mail ias@pnp.gov.ph

Drug pushing is as as addictive as drug using itself.

Drug pushers are at the same time drug users . Drug pushing help fund their habit. There are two addictions now involved - Addiction to the drug, and addiction to the easy money

I cannot be convinced of any drug pusher who was already been on the trade for some time who'll say he'll quit. For as long as they are still on the trade they will keep on to it steadfastly until arrested or disabled by any means.

Infront of their friends and relatives, they'll try to come clean by trying to invent some stories of excuses on why they cannot stop the trade- "ludicrous"!

Ambulance used to transport shabu

BTW, in other countries ambulances and emergency vehicles are do checked. When I was in Saudi, our Arab driver was followed by a patrol car to the hospital and checked after passing on a red light for which he was cited. Unlike here, counter-flowing in a hazardous way to avoid traffic.

Mayor Duterte is dead right in his move to check ambulances entering Davao City regardless of the situation of the patient on board.

This is a laudable reaction to this issue of politicians using town ambulance to smuggle shabu.

However, in order not to jeopardize the emergency run of the ambulance, here is a simple technique to check the ambulance; Ambulance passing the checkpoint will be flagged down for police officers to board the ambulance up to the hospital and do the checking after the patient has been off-loaded to the emergency room.

Every minute or seconds that tick by is a precious moment between life and death of the patient. Mr. Duterte should remember this if he considers life as a priority.

There is also a legal issue when checking a vehicle in a checkpoint. There is no problem if the check is done in a visual basis, but if it is a "strip" and physical search of the vehicle is involved, a Search Warrant is required to make it legal otherwise, the evidence seized from the search cannot be admissible in court as evidence and it will rebound to the cops who conducted the search to be vulnerable to the offense of " Illegal Search".

If police officers will always succumb to the whims and caprices of politicians without looking ahead for legal impediments they can be a victim of their own undertakings.

And now ...

Duterte names mayor tagged in ‘shabu ambulance delivery’

http://www.philstar.com/philstar/NEWS200610189902.htm

Now that this mayor has been named and identified, what criminal action has been instituted against this politician ?

Can we expect a full grunt of the law and the brunt of its punishment be achieved on this case ?

Let us see if political protectionism will not come into play.

I am very keen to be updated on this case.

Election fever is up in the air and this is bad news...

PDEA chief fears use of narcomoney in 2007 polls
By Edith Regalado
The Philippine Star 12/04/2006

DAVAO CITY — Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency chief Dionisio Santiago admitted the danger of narcomoney to be used to finance the candidacies of those running in the 2007 elections.

"The danger of narcopolitics in the next elections is real. We have received reports already but it is hard to confirm them. We cannot pinpoint anyone. But it is really very dangerous," said Santiago, who arrived here yesterday for the launching of the Mindanao Independent Film Festival which the PDEA Southern Mindanao office also co-sponsored.

Illegal drugs trade in the country has become a multi-billion peso industry which, Santiago said, seeps into the political system as well.

However, Santiago refused to give an estimate on the total amount of narcomoney that would possibly be used in the coming May 2007 elections.

"I could not give any estimate. The Philippines is a big area. And it would depend on the needs of the politicians and what are their areas," Santiago said.

In urban areas, narcomoney could fetch as much as P30 to P50 million for each candidate, at times even much higher.

Rural areas reportedly need lesser amounts than what is required in densely-populated urban areas.

The PDEA chief said that money may not be enough guarantee for a candidate to win but still it is a big factor in running and winning in elections.

Santiago cited how certain politicians have become Robinhoods, giving out money and goodies to their constituents using narcomoney.

Additionally, illegal drug financiers reportedly attempt to cut across all levels of the electoral posts. "They would really find a way how they can get in and finance the candidacies of certain individuals," he added.

Another consideration, Santiago said, is when a candidate is faced with a formidable opponent which would require more financial support.

"The need for money is bigger when a candidate is against somebody who really has money and at the same time has good track record. That is one instance that narcomoney comes in also," Santiago said.

But the PDEA chief likewise said the elections would be the best time to update the PDEA order of battle.

"It is during elections that rival candidates always throw dirt at each other. And we at PDEA would just listen to all those allegations which sometimes concern reported involvement of a candidate in illegal drugs," Santiago furthered.

He stressed that PDEA would usually just validate the information they get during elections and check it against their own list.

http://www.philstar.com/philstar/NEWS200612049906.htm

One of the pre-requisite for filing a cerificate of candidacy is the Income Tax Returns of the candidate where Assets and Liabilities are so crucial to determine the election spending and legal wealth of the candidate.

If the election spending cannot be reconcilled with the income, it constitutes election fraud where a winning candidate cannot be proclaimed and subsequent criminal action will be instituted. The same fate will happen to the loser if his or her campaign is tainted with fraud by spending huge sum of money out of an unexplained or ilicit source. But, in typical Philippine politics can we put it straight ?

Cagayan’s top shabu dealer falls
By Charlie Lagasca
The Philippine Star 12/07/2006

TUGUEGARAO CITY — A joint team of the provincial police and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) arrested whom they considered the top shabu dealer in Cagayan the other day.

The suspect, Edgar Navarro, 41, who allegedly supplied shabu in the coastal town of Aparri and the nearby municipalities of Lallo, Gattaran and Lasam, was collared in a buy-bust operation in Barangay San Antonio, Aparri.

PDEA Director Primitivo Bayongan Jr. said Navarro was nabbed in the house of one Bernie Tarampi, 36, on Rizal street. Ten grams of shabu with a street value of P60,000 and drug paraphernalia were seized from him.

Bayongan said Navarro’s arrest came after two test-buys conducted by PDEA assets.

Chief Superintendent Jefferson Soriano, Cagayan Valley police director, said Navarro was arrested in 2004 and 2005 for the same offense but managed to post bail.

Cagayan Gov. Edgar Lara commended the PDEA and the Cagayan police for a job well-done and assured them of his continued support in the fight against illegal drugs.

http://www.philstar.com/philstar/NEWS200612079905.htm

Navarro was arrested in 2004 and 2005 for the same offense but managed to post bail.

Hmmmm... is there no strike three? That he should be :drool: already?

P2 M worth of shabu seized in Pasay
By Nestor Etolle
The Philippine Star 01/06/2007

Anti-illegal drug operatives of the Manila Police District (MPD) seized half a kilo of shabu, with an estimated street value of P2 million, from three suspected drug pushers in a buy-bust operation in Pasay City Thursday night.

According to Superintendent Florencio Ortilla, chief of the MPD’s anti-illegal drug division (DAID), those arrested were beleived responsible for the distribution of shabu in Manila, Pasay City and Parañaque City.

DAID operatives had conducted continuous surveillance operations on the suspects from Manila to Pasay, following receipt of information that they were to deliver shabu to one of their buyers, Ortilla added.

Accompanied by a police asset, Ortilla and his men waited at the parking area of a large shopping mall in Pasay City where the drug transaction was supposed to take place.

The suspects arrived shortly to meet with a DAID operative who acted as a poseur-buyer. Ortilla and his men pounced on the suspects after the transaction took place.

The suspects were identified as Morsie MacArthur, 19; Muktar Mohammad, 32; and his wife Jovy, 23, all residents of Baclaran in Parañaque City.

Seized from the suspects were several plastic sachets containing suspected shabu placed inside two plastic bags.

Ortilla said the seized drugs could fetch some P2 million.

During interrogation, the suspects admitted supplying shabu to drug users in Manila, Pasay City and Parañaque City. However, they refused to name their source of the illegal drugs.

Charges of violation of the anti-illegal drugs law were filed against the three suspects.

http://www.philstar.com/philstar/NEWS200701066302.htm

Good job MPD :thumb:

Pasay? Just hope no crying of foul will happen after a few days from their brothers there.

2 suspected international drug lords nabbed
By Cecille Suerte Felipe
Friday, November 16, 2007

The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) presented yesterday two foreigners suspected of leading a transnational illegal drug syndicate that operates in the Philippines and other parts of Asia.

PDEA chief Dionisio Santiago said alleged leader Cai Qing Hai and his right-hand man Hong Chun Chan, alias Jameson Go Ang, were arrested as part of Oplan White Water, a program designed to expose all methamphetamine hydrochloride or shabu laboratories in the country.

“We got the big fish,” Santiago told reporters, adding that the two men were on the wanted list of the International Drug Enforcement Council (IDEC).

Santiago said the two suspects, arrested last Oct. 30, were behind the clandestine shabu laboratory on 143 Langka street in Barangay Pagsawitan, Sta. Cruz, Laguna.

Police said Cai has a warrant for his arrest in Quezon City, and has a P500,000 reward on his head.

Santiago said Cai was also behind the establishment of a clandestine laboratory in Semenyih, Malaysia. He was arrested in 2004 and was about to be deported to Fozhou, China when he escaped from the Immigration Detention Center in Malaysia.

Cai was also said to be the mastermind behind the production of 1.7 tons of shabu, based on intelligence from Chinese and Malaysia authorities.

Hong, on the other hand, allegedly handles the distribution of dangerous drugs and collection of payments, mostly from Muslim drug traffickers. He was also a target of the China National Narcotics Control Commission and the PDEA.

http://www.philstar.com/index.php?Metro&p=...&aid=2007111526

Good work PDEA :thumb: Let's just hope these crooks are no Houdinis.

Shabu chemicals worth over P1 trillion seized from La Union farm house
By Eva Visperas
Friday, July 11, 2008

NAGUILIAN, La Union – Police seized six truckloads of chemicals and other paraphernalia that can be used to manufacture 180,000 kilos of shabu, worth more than P1 trillion, during a raid at a farm house that was turned into a drug laboratory here last Wednesday.

Senior Superintendent Noli Taliño, La Union police director, said in a phone interview with The STAR that the raiding team arrested two caretakers of the farm that was leased by a certain George Cordero from Bulacan.

Cordero was not around during the raid but caretakers Dante Tomas Palaganas, 41, and Andy Tangalim, 44, were taken into custody.

Taliño said the caretakers claimed they were not allowed by their boss to go to the laboratory and were only ordered to take care of the premises.

He said the raiding team, composed of members of the Naguilian police, the provincial police office, the regional police headquarters, conducted the raid at around 3 p.m. at the farmhouse in Barangay Binmotobot.

Investigators said the huge volume of chemicals confiscated could produce as much as 180,000 kilos of shabu with a street value of more than P1 trillion. A kilo of shabu is now worth P6,000.

Investigators said the police operation was conducted in coordination with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) and the office of La Union Gov. Manoling Ortega.

Taliño said the raiding team recovered the chemicals and laboratory equipment from two sites at the farm located in a secluded area in a mountainous section of the barangay.

He said the chemicals were stored at the main farmhouse, which is a bungalow. There were two other small buildings, one of which has a cave with a concrete floor. The farm has a perimeter fence made of galvanized iron sheets.

Probers said that foul odor emanating from the farmhouse prompted nearby residents to report it to the police.

Taliño said the two arrested farm caretakers were placed under interrogation while the seized items were turned over yesterday to the PDEA.

Drug enforcement agents said the seized items include 159 bags of soda, iodine crystal, heather, hydrochloric acid, and red phosphorous and three gallons of organic solvent. – With Edu Punay, Cecille Suerte Felipe

http://www.philstar.com/index.php?Headline...aid=20080710149

Sotto seeks lifting of juvenile exemption from illegal drug cases
By Edu Punay
Friday, July 11, 2008

Newly appointed Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB) chairman Vicente “Tito” Sotto III urged Congress to amend the law on juvenile justice to strengthen the campaign against illegal drugs, particularly among the youth.

Sotto said he would submit his proposal to amend Republic Act 9344, or the Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act of 2006, particularly on the provisions that prohibit arrest and interrogation of minors involved in drug cases.

“We are handicapped by this law. We are having a hard time in our war on drugs and then they would just make our efforts to catch and help young pushers and users futile,” the former senator said.

Sotto, the principal author of the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act, proposed to exempt drug cases from coverage of the juvenile justice law.

RA 9344 prohibits arrest and prosecution of a child offender of age 15 or below.

Sotto said the provision in RA 9344 exempting children from being arrested and prosecuted for drug offenses is considered by anti-narcotics authorities as a “major hindrance” in the implementation of laws on illegal drugs.

“This law was triggered by concerns on the welfare of our youth. But we have to understand that we cannot help these juvenile delinquents who are involved in drugs by just letting them go,” Sotto said.

Sotto cited statistics of the DDB that revealed the seriousness of the problem of illegal drugs among the youth.

Records showed that out of the conservative estimate of 3.7 million drug users and pushers nationwide, almost four percent – or some 150,000 – are below 14 years old.

“So what would happen to these children if we let them go without necessary reform? They would become drug addicts at 15 and criminals at 17 or 18,” Sotto remarked.

http://www.philstar.com/index.php?Headline...aid=20080710148

QC cops spotted fetching top drug suspects

abs-cbnNEWS.com | 04/02/2009 8:56 AM


The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) is investigating the possible involvement of some Quezon City policemen in the illegal drug operations of a Chinese drug group cell.

PDEA Director General Dionisio Santiago told ABS-CBN News that their agents' saw during a surveillance operation a Quezon City police mobile car fetching Mylene Donato and her husband Peter Ang from their condominium unit along Amoranto Street, Quezon City.

Santiago revealed the information during Wednesday night's raid at the couple's unit, which has been allegedly turned into a shabu "kitchen-lab."

Superintendent Norberto Babagay, commander of the Quezon City Police District (QCPD) Station 1, which holds jurisdiction of Amoranto area, declined to commend. He said he would have to verify PDEA's information first before reacting.

Chief Superintendent Roberto Rosales, Metro Manila police director, said he would order the QCPD to look into PDEA's information and identify the policemen.

PDEA agents, joined by several members of the Manila Police District, swooped down on the condominium unit around 8 p.m., but failed to arrest the couple.

Security guards of the condominium told police that the couple started renting the unit last year. They said they last saw the couple on March 16.

Santiago said the couple could have sensed that the PDEA and police agents are gaining on them after the arrest of their fellow "Tiger Group" members, Cai Xihe and Victor Chiu, who are both alleged shabu chemists of the Chinese drug mafia.

Seized from the couple's kitchen-lab were 25 grams of suspected shabu (methamphetamine hydrochloride) worth P50,000 and shabu-making chemicals and paraphernalia.

Santiago said the raid was the fourth in a series of operations being conducted by the PDEA to dismantle the Tiger Group.

The first shabu lab of the Tiger Group was discovered by PDEA agents in Cainta, Rizal, which was followed by the discovery of another kitchen-lab in Sta. Cruz, Manila and Talayan Village in Quezon City. With a report from Gretchen Malalad, ABS-CBN News

http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/nation/metro-ma...p-drug-suspects

2 PDEA agents killed, 2 others hurt in Sultan Kudarat ambush
Philstar.com
Philstar.com - Tuesday, April 14

MANILA, Philippines - Two intelligence operatives of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency were killed while two others were hurt after they were attacked by still unidentified gunmen in Sultan Kudarat, Ma­guindanao 5 a.m. yesterday morning.

Those killed were identified as Intelligence Officer 2 (IO2) Pablo June Jala and a confidential agent identified only as Tho.

Those wounded were IO3 Brian Babang and IO1 Mark Anthony Viray who are now undergoing treatment at a hospital in Cotabato City where attending doctors have pronounced them to be in stable condition.

They were ambushed as they were on their way to serve a warrant of arrest against one Piad Buaya Abdula, alias Piad, along the vicinity of Simuay town.

Lt. Col. Jonathan Ponce, spokesman of the Army’s 6th Infantry Division, said the slain PDEA-ARMM agents were killed right inside their vehicle.

Ponce said the other PDEA-ARMM agents inside the vehicle managed to return fire and engaged the gunmen in a 20-minute gunbattle.

Jala is a member of PDEA Academy’s Unang Sinag Class of 2006-01, the first batch of agents who were recruited and trained through the support of the P1 billion anti-graft fund administered by the Presidential Anti-Graft Commission (PAGC).

Babang is a member of Philippine Military Academy Class 2001 while Viray belongs to PDEA Academy Masidlak Class 2008-03.

PDEA Director General Dionisio Santiago said the agency is now in mourning and has flown its colors on half mast in salute of those killed and hurt in the ambush.

The agents were allegedly attacked while operating in a critical area that is under the influence of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.

“We will make sure that their sacrifices were not in vain. Close coordination is now being undertaken with counterparts from the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine National Police to determine the possible links of our targets with the MILF,” Santiago said.

Pursuit operations are now being carried out by combined elements of PDEA’s Task Group in Central Mindanao in team up with military and police counterparts.

“This is a clear indicator that the war on illegal drugs has just been elevated to the next level. Our sustained efforts are creating an impact on the activities of drug syndicates, thus they are now resorting to violence in retaliation for their losses,” Santiago, condemning the incident, said. – With John Unson - By Michael Punongbayan (Philstar News Service, www.philstar.com)

http://ph.news.yahoo.com/star/20090414/tph...ta-5994a93.html

13 cops sacked for non-appearance in court
Philstar.com
Philstar.com - Tuesday, May 5

MANILA, Philippines – Thirteen policemen were sacked from service after they failed to attend court proceedings for several drug-related cases, the Philippine (PNP) National Police announced today.

PNP chief Director Gen. Jesus Verzosa ordered the dismissal of the policemen for their non-appearance in the hearings, which led to the dismissal of drug cases.

Dismissed were PO3 Joel Sanchez, PO2 Rommel Bulanon, PO3 Leonardo Ramos and PO3 Teresita Reyes of Quezon City Police District; PO3 Perlito Obligacion, PO1 Garvin Mendi, PO1 Joseph Tedd Leonor, PO1 Arnel Templa and PO1 Gerald Lagos of Southern Police District; PO2 Dennis Adan, PO2 Noe Abrdo, PO2 Moises Ramos and PO1 Jay Angeles of the Manila Police District.

From Apr. 13 to 20, the PNP also filed 20 criminal cases against 23 policemen for failure to appear in court regarding drug-related cases.

Chief Superintendent Nicanor Bartolome, PNP spokesperson, said the criminal cases are separate from the filing of administrative charges against the policemen for serious neglect of duty.

“The PNP is confident that the designated disciplinary authorities can resolve the other pending cases in the soonest possible time,” he said. - By Dennis Carcamo (Philstar News Service, www.philstar.com)

http://ph.news.yahoo.com/star/20090505/tph...rt-541dfb4.html

Cases dismissed ... :bs: