COMBINED agents of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency and the Philippine National Police have stepped up their crackdown on members of a West African Drug Syndicate which has gained notoriety for trafficking cocaine and shabu in the country using their local contacts.
Over a dozen members of the drug ring, mostly Nigerian nationals have been put to jail in the past by the PNP headed by General Debold M. Sinas and the PDEA headed by Director General Wilkins M. Villanueva.
In many cases, these West African nationals have used their poor Filipina girlfriends and other Filipino contacts to traffic drugs in Metro Manila and the provinces.
The PDEA has been joined by the PNP Drug Enforcement Group headed by Brigadier Gen. Ronald O Lee and the 17 Police Regional Offices in the campaign against the foreign drug personalities on orders of Gen. Sinas.
Last Monday, three Nigerian nationals said to be involved in big-time drug trafficking in Calabarzon region were arrested by combined operatives of the PDEA and the Cavite Police Provincial Office during two separate anti-narcotics operations in General Trias City.
Seized from the suspects were around P10.8 million worth of shabu and dried marijuana leaves, said Villanueva.
The PDEA chief said that at around 8:50 p.m. Monday, two of the suspects identified as Benjamin Ebubechukwum Enemuo 28; and Chidubem Precious Nwonu,22, were arrested during a sting at Lot Black 1 Alden Street, Kensington Phase 17, Lancaster New City, Barangay Navarro in General Trias City.
Recovered from the possession of the duo were at least one kilo of shabu worth P6.8 million and the buy-bust money.
The 3rd suspect identified as Ifeanyi Chiales Ofoma was arrested in an entrapment operation at Block 26, Lot 17, Kensington Phase 22 in nearby Bgy. Bacao around 11:30 in the evening.
The suspect yielded some five kilograms of dried marijuana leaves valued at P600,000, around 500 grams of the so-called ‘poor man’s cocaine’ worth P3.4 million, a digital weighing scale and the marked money paid to him by an undercover officer.
Villanueva said that undercover officers of the PDEA Regional Offices 4-A and 1 and the General Trias City Police Station were involved in the successful anti-drug operations prompted by complaints from local residents regarding the suspected illegal drug activities of the three West African nationals.
Villanueva said that the three are now facing non-balable charges for sale and possession of prohibited drugs under Republic Act 9165 or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.
