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SOME P20
million worth of illegal drug-making materials and
laboratory equipment were destroyed by the Philippine
Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA).
The materials were destroyed at the
Green Planet Management Inc. facility, Park Island
Industrial Compound, Valenzuela City, on Friday.
PDEA Director General Dionisio Santiago
said the destroyed controlled precursors, essential
chemicals and laboratory equipment were evidence
confiscated by drug-enforcement authorities from the
clandestine shabu laboratories in Calumpit, Bulacan;
Pilar, Bataan; and Angeles City, Pampanga, in several
raids.
Santiago said the destruction of
controlled precursors, essential chemicals and
laboratory equipment is pursuant to Section 21, Article
II of Republic Act 9165, Dangerous Drugs Board
Regulation 1, Series of 2002 and DDB Regulation 1 Series
of 2007.
PDEA is required to destroy confiscated
dangerous drugs and equipment used in the manufacture of
illegal drugs within one month of their confiscation.
Meanwhile, the PDEA Metro Manila
Regional Office arrested a Chinese in Santa Cruz,
Manila, in a buy-bust operation last week.
Santiago identified the suspect as Tony
Pong Ang, 25, of
Tambacan Street,
Santa Cruz,
Manila.
The operation resulted in the
confiscation of some 200 grams of methamphetamine
hydrochloride, or shabu, worth at least P 1.2 million.
A case for violation of Section 5 (Sale
of Dangerous Drugs), Article II of RA 9165, was filed
against Ang while follow-up operations are being
conducted to determine his source of dangerous drugs.
Santiago commended the revitalized
efforts of PDEA under its new leadership.
“PDEA now enjoys improved coordination
and cooperation with its partner law enforcement
agencies, especially the different Anti-Illegal Drugs
Special Operations Task Groups in the National Capital
Region (NCR) as well as in the regional and provincial
areas,”
Santiago said.
He added that the PDEA operational
guidelines are in effect to stop the corruption issue
attached to anti-drug operations and help improve the
conviction rate of drug cases in the courts.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court affirmed
the resolution of the Department of Justice finding
probable cause to indict a Chinese for violation of the
Dangerous Drugs Act.
In a decision penned by Associate
Justice Antonio Eduardo Nachura, the Court’s Third
Division held that the DOJ did not err when it ordered
the filing of criminal complaint against Juanito Chan
alias Zhang Zhenting.
Chan was arrested in 1999 after
allegedly selling a kilo of shabu worth P600,000 to
agents of the defunct Presidential Antiorganized Crime
Task Force (Paoctf) in a drug sting in Quezon City.
Chan questioned the findings of probable
cause by the State Prosecutor, alleging that he was a
victim of a “frame up” and “extortion” by police
officers who reportedly demanded P2 million in exchange
for his release.
“We hold that the Secretary of Justice
did not commit grave abuse of discretion in affirming
the finding of probable cause by the State Prosecutor,”
the Court ruled.
Nachura, however, lamented that while
the petition was pending before the Court, Judge Emilio
Leachon Jr. of the Regional Trial Court in
Quezon City
arraigned Chan in September 2001 and subsequently
ordered his release after posting a P100,000 bail.
“We recognize the court’s authority to
grant bail in cases involving capital offenses after a
determination of evidence of guilt is not strong. But we
urge them to be circumspect in exercising such
discretion,” the Court said.
“In this case, it is glaring that the
bail bond fixed by the RTC was exceedingly low
considering that the crime charged is illegal sale of
prohibited drug punishable by reclusion perpetua to
death and a fine ranging from P500,000 to P10 million
with the risk of flight extremely high, the petitioner
[Chan] being a Chinese citizen,” the Court noted. --With
J. San Juan |
