Abalos, Gen. Marbil thank fisherfolks for P100M shabu turnover
DEPARTMENT of Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Benjamin C. Abalos Jr. and Philippine National Police (PNP) chief General Rommel Francisco D. Marbil thanked Ilocos Sur and Pangasinan fisherfolks provinces who turned over to the police more than 100 kilograms of shabu they found.
Recently, 93 packs containing an estimated P632 million worth of shabu from Ilocos Sur and Pangasinan waters were incinerated in a crematorium in Ilocos Sur, said Police Regional Office 1 director, Brigadier Gen. Lou F. Evangelista.
The drugs weighed a total of 93.042 kilos and valued at P632.689,136.
Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) chair Director General Moro Virgilio F. Lazo, Brig. Gen. Evangelista, Ilocos Sur Police Provincial Office director, Colonel Darnell T. Dulnuan and Governor Jeremias Singson witnessed the destruction of the recovered drugs.
But days after the floating contrabands were destroyed, 11 more similar drug-laden plastic packets floating in the waters of Agno, Pangasinan were turned over to the police by residents who found them.
Evangelista said the 11 packages with ‘Cai Yu Lin’ markings were similar to those retrieved in Ilocos Norte.
The official said that residents of Brgy. Gayusan in Agno found nine packs containing the drugs.
The official said the recovery of the 11 plastic packets came after residents found a gray sack floating near a shoreline in the province last month.
The sack was found containing several aqua blue packs labeled with foreign characters and ‘Cai Yun Li.’
The PRO-1 director said that after seeing an informative leaflet about a similar shabu-laden plastic packet, one of the witnesses sought assistance from a kagawad of Brgy. Baruan to verify their previous discovery.
The group revisited the location and recovered the additional suspected shabu packages.
The recovered items were turned over to barangay officials who reported the find to the Agno Municipal Police Station.
The recovered pieces of drug evidence were subjected to an on-site inventory in the presence of barangay officials and a representative from the Department of Justice.
Evangelista said that the Ilocos Norte Provincial Forensic Unit confirmed that a similar light blue plastic pack with markings “Cai Yun Li” turned over to authorities in Burgos, Ilocos Norte contained 997.62 grams of shabu worth P6,783,816.00 based on Dangerous Drugs Board value.
Prior to that, 80 packs containing an estimated P543 million worth of shabu were found floating in the waters of Ilocos Sur week triggering a joint PDEA and PNP investigation into the discovery of the contraband.
A black sack with 19 transparent plastic packets each containing a kilo of the suspected drugs were found by two fishermen in the waters of Sitio Nagpartian in Brgy. Puro in Magsingal, Ilocos Sur, according to PDEA.
A 20th plastic packet with the same substance was also recovered on the same day in the waters of Magsingal.
Another 24 packs containing the same substance were also found by fishermen in the waters of Brgy. Solotsot in San Juan.
The two fishermen were on their way home on board amotorized banca when they spotted a floating plastic container attached to a round wood.
When they plucked the container out of the water, they found out that it contained the plastic sack with the suspected drugs.
The contraband was worth at least P162.7 million.
On the other hand, 18 more packs were recovered by another fisherman in the waters of Brgy. Villamar in Caoayan.
The same number of plastic packets with drugs were also found floating in the waters of Sta. Maria.
The recovered contrabands all bore ‘Chinese markings.’
Evangelista said he has ordered all concerned chiefs of police in Ilocos Sur, Pangasinan and La Union to continue seeking the help of fishermen and village leaders in coastal communities in recovering similar contrabands that could have been washed away in their shorelines or floating in the high seas.
The official said they are initially looking into the possibility that a ‘mother ship’ smuggled the drugs and dropped them in a designated point where they will be picked up by smaller boats.
