PDEA: Suspected shabu worth P42.5M seized; Ugandan nabbed at NAIA

Suspected shabu worth P42.5 million was seized and an Ugandan citizen was arrested in an interdiction operation at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) in Pasay City, the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) said Wednesday.

In a statement, PDEA said authorities conducted the operation at the Customs Exclusion Room, Arrival Area, Terminal 3 of the airport around 8 p.m. on Tuesday.

A total of 6,250 grams of suspected methamphetamine hydrochloride or shabu was discovered from the suspect’s luggage, according to the PDEA.

“The arrested suspect, identified only by the alias “Adnan,” a 45-year-old Ugandan national and businessman, was an arriving passenger from Antananarivo, Madagascar, with a connecting flight to the Philippines,” the PDEA said.

“Upon inspection of his gray luggage, authorities discovered five improvised packaging tape bags containing a white crystalline substance suspected to be shabu, concealed among assorted clothes, toys, and other personal items,” he added.

Among the recovered items were:

• a gray luggage containing the alleged illegal substance
• an Ugandan passport
• a boarding pass
• black backpack
• bank cards
• a mobile phone
• several US dollar bills
• a company identification card

The suspected illegal drugs as evidence will be submitted to the PDEA Laboratory Service for chemical analysis.

The arrested suspect is set to undergo inquest proceedings for importation of dangerous drugs under the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002. — Joviland Rita/RSJ, GMA Integrated News