DFA to assist three Pinoys caught smuggling drugs in Indonesia

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said that they will be extending legal and consular assistance to the three Filipinos caught in Jakarta for smuggling drugs.

“We are prepared to extend the necessary legal and consular assistance doon sa tatlong Pilipino na nahulihan ng drugs sa Jakarta,” DFA Spokesman Raul Hernandez told Balitanghali's Raffy Tima.

Hernandez said they still need to verify the details of the incident, even with reports claiming that the three were professional drug couriers who tried to smuggle methamphetamine into Indonesia.

“Sa ngayon ang importante ay yung kanilang legal, human rights ay ma-protektahan at sisiguraduhin po natin na meron po silang legal representation doon sa kanilang kaso sa Jakarta,” he added.

Hernandez said that the Philippine Embassy in Jakarta is already coordinating with Indonesian authorities about the incident.

The accused could possibly face the death penalty in Indonesia after being caught last week allegedly smuggling the illegal substance estimated to be worth $2.1 million (roughly P80 million).

The unnamed suspects, aged 40 to 61 years old, allegedly hid the drugs in milk cartons, with each of them carrying 5 cartons containing a total of 15 kilograms of drugs.

According to Jakarta customs official Okto Irianto, the three admitted to have smuggled drugs into other countries prior to the incident.

“They are professional couriers and this was their first attempt to smuggle drugs into Indonesia,” Irianto said.

Indonesian authorities are currently interrogating the three to find out more details of a drug syndicate that they are possibly working with. - Andrei Medina, VVP/BM, GMA News