Shabu worth P331.2M聽destroyed聽in Zamboanga del Sur
Officials prepare to put bags of illegal drugs inside the thermal facility. Photo taken on Feb 12, 2025 inside the LPEC compound in Aurora town, Zamboanga del Sur. | PHOTO: LEAH AGONOY
PAGADIAN CITY, Zamboanga del Sur — Some 48.68 kilograms of shabu (crystal meth) worth P331.2 million and more than a thousand expired pieces of medicines were destroyed by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) in Region 9 at Libertad Power and Energy Corporation (LPEC) in Aurora town, Zamboanga del Sur on Wednesday, Feb. 12.
Maharani Gadaoni-Tosoc, PDEA-9 regional director, said it was, so far, the biggest volume of illegal drugs to be destroyed in the region.
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- Officials prepare to put bags of illegal drugs inside the thermal facility. Photo taken on Feb 12, 2025 inside the LPEC compound in Aurora town, Zamboanga del Sur. | PHOTO: LEAH AGONOY
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- Officials prepare to put bags of illegal drugs inside the thermal facility. Photo taken on Feb 12, 2025 inside the LPEC compound in Aurora town, Zamboanga del Sur. | PHOTO: LEAH AGONOY
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- Officials prepare to put bags of illegal drugs inside the thermal facility. Photo taken on Feb 12, 2025 inside the LPEC compound in Aurora town, Zamboanga del Sur. | PHOTO: LEAH AGONOY
Gadaoni-Tosoc said the drugs were confiscated from drug enforcement operations around Zamboanga Peninsula last year, the biggest bulk of which came from the two anti-drug operations in Zamboanga City, which yielded 41 kilos and 7 kilos, respectively. The rest came from Zamboanga del Sur cases.
PDEA had received information that these illegal drugs were trafficked to Zamboanga City from Malaysia, passing through Basilan, Sulu, and Tawi-Tawi. When these reached Zamboanga City, the drugs were transported to nearby provinces and regions, Tosoc said.
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- Chemists from the PDEA and the police (in white) prepare the confiscated illegal drugs to be destroyed inside the LPEC’s thermal boiler. Photo taken on Feb 12, 2025 inside the LPEC compound in Aurora town, Zamboanga del Sur. | PHOTO: LEAH AGONOY
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- Chemists from the PDEA and the police (in white) prepare the confiscated illegal drugs to be destroyed inside the LPEC’s thermal boiler. Photo taken on Feb 12, 2025 inside the LPEC compound in Aurora town, Zamboanga del Sur. | PHOTO: LEAH AGONOY
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- Chemists from the PDEA and the police (in white) prepare the confiscated illegal drugs to be destroyed inside the LPEC’s thermal boiler. Photo taken on Feb 12, 2025 inside the LPEC compound in Aurora town, Zamboanga del Sur. | PHOTO: LEAH AGONOY
She said the Zamboanga Peninsula coastlines were very vulnerable and porous, hence the need to intensify their monitoring along these areas this year.
Article continues after this advertisementShe \said they had initiated meetings with concerned government agencies for the creation of an InterAgency Drug Interdiction Task Group to intensify monitoring of illegal drugs in the region’s airports and seaports.
The confiscated shabu were destroyed using LPEC’s thermal facility and following strict environmental and safety protocols, according to Tosoc.
She said the destruction was done based on the orders issued by the Regional Trial Courts of Pagadian City, Molave, Aurora, and Zamboanga City, and in coordination with key government agencies.
