BOC: P68M worth of ecstasy seized at NAIA

The Bureau of Customs (BOC) said Friday it intercepted a shipment of ecstasy packaged as “dog food” at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).

In a news release, the BOC said its Port District of NAIA, together with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) and the NAIA Inter-Agency Drug Interdiction Task Group (NAIA-IADITG), seized the shipment.

The intercepted shipment contained ecstasy with an estimated value of P68 million, according to Customs.

The bureau said the illegal drugs were concealed inside a box containing four packs of "dog food.”

It said that X-ray inspection found the scanned image of the box “suspicious.”

Upon physical examination, the BOC said the assigned examiner found 13,989.56 grams, equivalent to 40,389 tablets of methylenedioxymethamphetamine, popularly known as ecstasy, originating from the Netherlands.

Four individuals associated with the shipment, including the claimant, were promptly arrested for violation of Republic Act 9165, or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act, and RA 10863, also known as the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act (CMTA), the BOC said. — VBL, GMA Integrated News