Nov 072013
 

By

Customs chief Ruffy Biazon.  RYAN LEAGOGO/INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines — The Bureau of Customs filed drug smuggling charges before the Department of Justice against a South African national who was caught carrying 8.5 kilos of cocaine by alert BOC personnel at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) two weeks ago.

Customs Commissioner Ruffy Biazon said they have filed criminal charges against suspected drug mule Debbie Reyneke, citing the Department of Finance-attached agency’s intensified campaign against the use of the country’s ports of entry in the illegal drug trade.

“This should send a strong warning to international drug syndicates that the Philippines is not a place for illegal and hazardous drugs,” he said, stressing the BOC would not allow any foreign drug ring make the country one of their markets.

In a statement, the former Muntinlupa City legislator also said the BOC would “prosecute and seek for the maximum penalties allowed by law to all those caught attempting to smuggle illegal drugs into the country, if only to spare the lives of many young Filipinos.”

“Reyneke’s arrest on October 23 upon her arrival from Dubai on board an Emirates flight was the result of the bureau’s enhanced intelligence network,” said Biazon.

He disclosed that “Customs officials at the NAIA were already alerted of her arrival and the possibility of having illegal drugs in her luggage. When her bag was inspected, it yielded food packs containing a substance that tested positive during initial tests for the general narcotics alkaloid.”

“However, further tests conducted by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency confirmed the substance was actually cocaine,” he said.

Ma. Edita Tan, Customs deputy commissioner for the Revenue Collection and Monitoring Group, said they would “closely monitor the progress of the case (against Reyneke).”

“We will do everything within our means to get a conviction as we need to send the message to drug smugglers that they are not welcome in the Philippines,” she added.

Earlier, Biazon told the Philippine Daily Inquirer the bureau would intensify further its drive against international drug syndicates using the NAIA and other airports nationwide in their illegal trade.

The BOC “would double its efforts, mainly in the monitoring of arriving passengers, especially those coming from high-risk countries for illegal drugs. That is, after we have seen the shift in the modus operandi of international drug traffickers.”

“Employing drug mules, they are now using the airports for their illegal drug trade,” he said, noting during the last two quarters of 2012 alone, about 20 kilos of methamphetamine hydrochloride, or shabu worth over P163 million were seized by BOC personnel from seven foreign nationals at the NAIA.

Follow Us

Recent Stories:

Complete stories on our Digital Edition newsstand for tablets, netbooks and mobile phones; 14-issue free trial. About to step out? Get breaking alerts on your mobile.phone. Text ON INQ BREAKING to 4467, for Globe, Smart and Sun subscribers in the Philippines.

Tags: Bureau of Customs , cocaine , Crime , Debbie Reyneke , Department of Justice , Drug Smuggling , Foreign Nationals , Global Nation , Justice , Law , Ninoy Aquino International Airport , Ruffy Biazon

Factual errors? Contact the Philippine Daily Inquirer’s day desk. Believe this article violates journalistic ethics? Contact the Inquirer’s Reader’s Advocate. Or write The Readers’ Advocate:

Apr 182013
 
South African woman caught with 2 kg of shabu charged

By Erika Sauler Philippine Daily Inquirer 3:14 pm | Thursday, April 18th, 2013 MANILA, Philippines—A South African woman, who was arrested last week by agents of the National Bureau of Investigation, was charged in a Manila regional trial court with illegal transport of more than two kilograms of “shabu” (methamphetamine hydrochloride). The NBI Reaction, Arrest and Interdiction Division filed the complaint against Caroline Mmantoa Obijiofor, 50, a resident of the Republic of South Africa, after 940 grams of yellowish crystalline substance and 1.295 kg of white crystalline substance found in her possession tested positive for the dangerous substance. Agents of the NBI-RAID Anti-Illegal Drugs Task Force acted on intelligence information that Obijiofor would be entering the country on April 10 to transport illegal drugs to another African national. Upon confirming her arrival through a flight manifest, NBI agents followed Obijiofor from the airport to a hotel in Malate, Manila, where a room was reserved and paid for by another person. As the events matched the received information, an NBI agent introduced himself to Obijiofor and asked if the brown traveling bag she was carrying was hers. She said the clothes were hers but the luggage was provided by a group of men in Abedian, Africa. Obijiofor agreed to a search after canine dogs sniffed the bag and indicated the presence of illegal drugs. Two rectangular boxes containing the crystalline substances wrapped in plastic and blue carbon paper were found in the bag. Obijiofor was arrested and charged with violation of Read More …