P807K ‘HIGH-GRADE’ MARIJUANA FROM HONGKONG HIDDEN IN ‘LABUBU’ TOYS INTERCEPTED AT PORT OF CLARK

ALERT operatives of the Bureau of Customs (BOC)  intercepted some 538 grams of “high-grade” marijuana or “kush” worth P807,000 at the Port of Clark in Pampanga.

Customs Commissioner Ariel Nepomuceno on Wednesday said the illegal drugs were concealed in a parcel declared as “keychains.”

The contraband originated from Hong Kong and was bound for Biñan, Laguna. 

Nepomuceno said the parcel arrived on Nov. 15 and was flagged by the BOC’s X-ray Inspection Project (XIP) due to suspicious images revealed during scanning.

Personnel from the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) on Nov. 19 conducted a K-9 sniff test, which yielded positive indications for illegal substance.

During physical examination on two boxes of “Labubu” keychains, it was found out that each box contained two transparent sealed pouches filled with dried leaves and fruiting tops suspected to be kush.

Samples of the seized evidence submitted to PDEA for chemical analysis confirmed the substance as tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the active component in marijuana.

A warrant of seizure and detention was issued against the shipment for violation of Sections 118(g), 119(d), and 1113 paragraphs (f), (i), and (l) of Republic Act No. 10863 or the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act (CMTA), in relation to RA 9165. 

According to district collector Jairus Reyes, the vigilance and profiling skills of the port’s frontline officers resulted in the seizure of the illegal drugs. 

“The Port of Clark maintains a heightened watch against any form of drug smuggling. Our proactive operations safeguard the public from the harms of illegal drugs and contribute to building safer communities,” Reyes said.