PDEA update after a month of leading drug war: 404 arrests, P53.83 M drugs seizure

Manila, Philippines – After a month of leading the government’s war against illegal drugs, the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) has posted another significant achievement.

According to the agency, it made 1,341 operations from October 10 to November 10, after President Rodrigo Duterte announced PDEA’s role in war against drugs.

The operations also resulted to arrest of 404 drug personalities and seizure of P53.83 million worth of illegal drugs.

“This is 80.5 percent more than the operations conducted the previous month. As a result, a 14.4 percent increase in the number of arrested drug personalities was recorded,” PDEA Director Gen. Aaron Aquino said.

Aquino attributed the achievement to the shift of the agency’s operational thrusts to minimize the number of high-value targets by conducting high-impact and quality operations.

He said that total value of dangerous drugs and controlled precursors and essential chemicals (CPECs) seized during the period is 233.3 percent higher than previous month.

“Out of the seized drug evidence, 6.16 kilograms are methamphetamine hydrochloride, or shabu, with an estimated street value of P30.8 million, as compared to the shabu seizure of 1.87 kilograms worth P9,350,000, confiscated last month, an increase of 229.4 percent,” Aquino added.

Below is the list of PDEA’s big-time operations;

•  The buy-bust operation in Taguig conducted by PDEA ROIV-A agents in Taguig City last October 25, which leads to arrest of Dhan Usman y Saban, one of major pusher, and confiscation of P1 million worth of met or shabu.

• The arrest of an actor and two others in a buy-bust operatio in Parañaque on October 27.

•  Separate raids in Tivoli Garden Residences in Mandaluyong and I-Suites Hotel, Cubao on Nov. 2, which includes arrest of seven drug personalities and confiscation of different illegal drugs, such as shabu, ecstasy, cocaine and Marijuana.

•  The entrapment operation conducted last November 4, resulted to arrest of four suspects and seizure of shabu worth P6 million in Naga City.

• The arrest of the drug queen Yuk Lai Yu and her daughter during the sweep conducted at the Correctional Institution for Women (CIW), in Mandaluyong as well as the search conducted in San Miguel, Manila on November 6.

•  Then the arrest of two Nigerian nationals during a buy-bust operation in Kawit, Cavite on November 8, which includes confiscation of P6 million worth of shabu.

Aquino committed that the agency will continue to strive to achieve more than what is expected as the agency uphold the order to fight the illegal drugs.

“Failure is never an option when we took upon the sole authority in bringing order to country’s anti-drug campaign. We may be undermanned, underequipped and underfunded, but we continually strive to achieve more than what is expected,” Aquino said.

Source: Manila Bulletin