THE Bureau of Customs-Port of Clark, under the leadership of District Collector Atty. Ricardo Uy Morales II, CESE, together with the Customs Anti-Illegal Drugs Task Force (CAIDTF), X-ray Inspection Project (XIP), and Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA), seized P4.347 million worth of shabu last July 3, 2023.
The shipment, declared as “stainless steel bread toaster” from Arizona, USA, was initially profiled by customs personnel and was then subjected to x-ray scanning which revealed suspicious images. The said shipment likewise underwent K9 sniffing by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) K9 Unit which gave positive indications for the presence of dangerous drugs.
A physical examination was immediately conducted by the assigned customs examiner which led to the findings of four pouches of white crystalline substances weighing 630 grams concealed inside two “dear morning” brand oven toaster. A field testing was conducted on the substance by CAIDTF Clark personnel through a Raman Rigaku Spectrometer which yielded positive reading for “Methamphetamine”.
Samples were turned over to the PDEA for chemical laboratory analysis, which was later confirmed as Methamphetamine Hydrochloride or commonly known as “Shabu”, a dangerous drug under the Republic Act (RA) No. 9165 or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.
A Warrant of Seizure and Detention was immediately issued by District Collector Morales against the shipment after finding probable cause for violation of Section 118 (g), 119 (d) and 1113 par. (f), (i), and (l)-(3) and (4) of the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act in relation to R.A. No. 9165.
“Due to the recent drug seizure of the Port of Clark, we remained on heightened alert and further improve our profiling measures to intercept similar concealments. These measures resulted to this another apprehension. We commend, again, the collective efforts of customs officers, CAIDTF, XIP, CIIS, and the support of PDEA,” said District Collector Morales.
The BOC, led by Commissioner Bienvenido Y. Rubio, vowed to remain vigilant and ensure that intensified security measures are put in place as part of its enhanced anti-illegal drug smuggling campaign.
