Second shabu shipment from Malaysia seized

THE Bureau of Customs continues to chalks up accomplishment in its anti-illegal drugs operation with the apprehension of another shipment of “shabu” and the arrest of its claimant during another successful ‘controlled delivery operation’ in Bulacan province.

Port of NAIA district collector, Carmelita ‘Mimel’ Talusan, in a report to Comm. Rey Leonardo Guerrero, said drug suspect, ‘Jayson Quijoy,’ 38, was arrested in Sta. Maria, Bulacan, last March 5, 2021, by combined elements from the BOC and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA), after claiming the drug package which arrived last February 16, 2021 at the NAIA.

The shipment, weighing some 2 kilos and worth P13.62 million, was hidden in a shipment of “hotpot grills” from Malaysia.

Unknown to the suspect, careful examination by NAIA customs officers of the shipment declared as “kitchen appliances—steamboat grill,” had already raised suspicion resulting to the discovery of the illegal drugs as confirmed by PDEA.

Talusan further noted that only last February 15, 2021, another illegal drug claimant was arrested after claiming a package of “Ecstasy” that arrived at the Central Mail Exchange Center (CMEC) in Pasay City.

The drug seizure last March 15, was the second incident since last month that shabu from Malaysia has been seized by the BOC.

Last February 16, 2021, the day the 2 kilos of shabu arrived at the NAIA, a shipment of one kilo of shabu, also from Malaysia and worth some P6.8 million, also arrived at the Clark airport hidden in a shipment of “airfryer silkware.”

Atty. Ruby Alameda, Clark district collector, then immediately coordinated with the PDEA for the conduct of a controlled delivery operation after forwarding the shipment to Cebu, its final destination.

Three days later, on February 19, 2021, the BOC announced that one drug suspect was arrested in Cebu after claiming the package.

Tight watch on pork, agri products

Meanwhile, Atty. Vincent ‘Jett’ Maronilla, BOC spokesman, confirmed they are instituting further measures to prevent the technical smuggling of agriculture products, especially pork, on instruction from Department of Finance (DOF) secretary, Carlos Dominguez.

Maronilla said that last February 9, 2021, Guerrero issued a memorandum “directing all ports to submit daily reports of importations of meat and poultry products for review and monitoring of shipments that may be violating the laws, rules, and regulations of the agency.”

Aside from preventing technical smuggling thru misdeclaration and misclassification using the customs declaration form, Maronilla said the BOC is now conducting a “mandatory x-ray inspection” of all reefer containers before its transfer from the ports to the Department of Agriculture’s accredited cold storage facilities.

Aiding these efforts, the official added is the operationalization of the bureau’s ‘Electronic Tracking of Containerized Cargoes’ (ETRACC) that now enables the BOC to effectively curb and detect” attempts by unscrupulous importers and truck drivers to divert the shipment to another destination to avoid DA inspection officers.

Maronilla added that the office of deputy commissioner for revenue collection and monitoring (RCMG), Atty. Vener Baquiran, had also initiated the revocation of the accreditation of importers and customs brokers and criminal cases filed against them before the Department of Justice (DOJ) for the smuggling of meat and agricultural products.

“Administrative investigations are also being conducted against BOC officials and personnel that are being linked to illegal and irregular activities,” Maronilla added.