TACLOBAN CITY—Police arrested on Wednesday (December 23) a Vietnamese national for alleged illegal possession of agarwood during an entrapment operation in Barangay Jubasan, Allen, Northern Samar.
In a report from the Police Regional Office headquarters, the suspect was identified as 39-year-old female Hong Dinh Thi Bich.
Joint police operatives confiscated from the suspect 10.9 kilos agarwood with an estimated value of P763,000; 1/2 kilo bird nest with an estimated worth of P750; accessories of making agar beads; and marked money.
Another unidentified male person, believed to be the live-in partner of the suspect, was able to evade arrest.
The operating units were from CIDG-Northern Samar Provincial Field Unit led by Captain Deogracias Diaz III and Regional Special Operations Group (RSOG)-PRO 8, together with Northern Samar SOG, 1st Northern Samar Provincial Mobile Force Company (NSPMFC), 803rd Coy, Regional Mobile Force Battalion (RMFB 8), and Allen Municipal Police Station.
The suspect will be facing charges for violation of section 77 of President Decree 705, or the Forestry Reform Code of the Philippines and violation of Republic Act 9147, otherwise known as the Wildlife Resources Conservation and Protection Act, police said in the report.
The arrested suspect was brought to CIDG-NSPFU together with the seized pieces of evidence for documentation and proper disposition.
The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) earlier said that trafficking of agarwood caused “indiscriminate cutting” of Lanete and Lapnisan trees, which are included in the national list of threatened plants and wildlife species in the country.
According to the DENR, high-quality agarwood, which is used in perfume and incense, could value as much as P300,000 to P350,000 per kilo.