PNP: Arrest of Sinaloa leader a ‘major blow’ vs. flow of drugs to PHL

 News
Feb 232014
 

The Philippine National Police on Sunday welcomed the arrest of the leader of Mexico’s Sinaloa drug cartel, saying it could delay or even stop the cartels’ expansion to the Philippines.

Police Chief Superintendent Theodore Sindac, PNP spokesman, said a vacuum in leadership caused by the arrest of Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman could lead to a halt in the flow of illegal drugs that Sinaloa has reportedly been bringing to the country.

“This will be a major blow to their operation, and that includes here in the Philippines. We welcome this development,” he said.

The PNP’s Anti-Illegal Drugs Special Operations Task Force confirmed the existence of the Sinaloa drug cartel in the country after P400 million in methamphetamine was seized in a raid in Batangas in December 2013.

The raid was followed by the arrests of two people linked to Sinaloa in operations in the southern part of Metro Manila. 

Sindac said, though, some people may try to keep the Sinaloa drug operation going. Police will be on the lookout for them, but Sindac said authorities are focused on Chinese drug syndicates, which have bigger operations.

Guzman was captured in the Mexican resort town of Mazatlan on Saturday by Mexican Navy personnel. — JDS, GMA News