President Rodrigo Duterte on Thursday vowed to go after big-time drug traffickers even during the coronavirus pandemic, saying he would dump them into the Pasig river.
Duterte said he was surprised when police seized P5.1 billion worth of shabu in Bulacan.
The President again threatened to kill those who want to destroy the country with illegal drugs.
“If you destroy my country distributing P5.1 billion [worth] of shabu all throughout the country, I will kill you,” Duterte said.
Duterte said the country has become a transshipment point of illegal drugs, citing the involvement of the Sinaloa drug cartel. Many police officers have already died in the government’s “journey to fight drugs,” he added.
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Around 756 kilos of suspected shabu with an estimated worth of P5.1 billion were seized by members of the Philippine National Police- Drug Enforcement Group (PNP-DEG) in Marilao, Bulacan recently.
Authorities discovered the suspected contraband concealed in 63 biscuit cans after a test-buy operation.
Three drug suspects, Chinese national Yuwen Cai and Filipinos identified as Angela Miole Tulio and Ma. Lyn Miole Tulio were arrested.
PNP chief Police General Archie Gamboa said they had been monitoring a drug syndicate that led them to the safehouse in Bulacan, which served as the group’s warehouse.
Gamboa said they believe the suspected shabu came from overseas and could have been distributed already as far as Visayas and Mindanao.
Meanwhile, government agents seized some P20 million worth of unregistered Chinese medical supplies, medicines and cosmetics believed to be the main source of illegal items being sold in different drug stores and clinics inside and outside the freeport.
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Three Chinese were arrested during the raid. They were Zidong Guo, 53; Chen Weiming, 31 and Hong Quiao Ling, 28, all temporarily staying in the freeport.
Archie Albao, supervising agent of the National Bureau of Investigation-Central Luzon Regional Office (NBI-CELRO), said the raid was conducted after an entrapment at Dome House and Nineth Supermarket by undercover members of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) who purchased Chinese-labelled medicines.
The Department of Justice earlier mobilized the NBI and Bureau of Immigration against clandestine medical clinics operating in the country.
“It seems that illegal medical clinics sprouted and had been operating without proper authority,” said Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra.
Recently, a pharmacy and three-bed medical clinic were padlocked by the NBI and FDA for selling unregistered medicines and operating without the necessary permits. The drug store and clinic were situated just a few meters away from Clark Freeport.
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Last month, authorities padlocked a makeshift medical facility inside Fontana Resort, believed to be catering exclusively to Chinese occupants.
A depot of China-made medicines and supplies was also padlocked simultaneously with the Fontana hospital.