Authorities intercepted approximately P36.9 million worth of high-grade marijuana, or kush, in a joint operation conducted by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) and the Bureau of Customs (BOC) at the Manila International Container Port in Tondo, Manila. The operation took place around 4 PM on Wednesday.
According to an ABS-CBN News report citing PDEA, the seizure was triggered by a BOC report on suspicious contents in a container at the port.
“Initially, when it was scanned, there were 419 boxes in the cargo, and 30 of them were flagged for further inspection due to suspicious contents,” said Arvin Targa, spokesperson for PDEA NCR.
Upon opening the 30 boxes, authorities found that two contained over 28 kilograms of kush.
“The first box had 56 vacuum-sealed packs of marijuana, while the second had 52 packs, making a total of 108 sealed packages,” Targa added. “The shipment was concealed among other items, making it look like a typical balikbayan box.”
Investigations revealed that the shipment originated from Vancouver, Canada. However, PDEA withheld details on the sender and intended recipient pending further inquiries.
“We have an address for both the sender and consignee, but we cannot jump to conclusions yet. The investigation is ongoing,” said Targa.
PDEA emphasized that this was one of their largest drug busts this month and vowed to strengthen coordination with seaports and airports to prevent similar smuggling attempts.
The confiscated drugs have been sent to the PDEA laboratory for further examination.
