In a joint operation, the Bureau of Customs – Ninoy Aquino International Airport (BOC-NAIA), with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) and the NAIA Inter-Agency Drug Interdiction Task Group (NAIA-IADITG), intercepted a shipment containing ecstasy with estimated value of PhP68 million.

Concealed inside a box containing four (4) packs of “dog food”, the Xray Inspection Project found the scanned image thereof as suspicious. Upon physical examination, the assigned Customs Examiner found 13,989.56 grams, equivalent to 40,389 tablets of Methylenedioxymethamphetamine, popularly known as Ecstasy with a street value of PhP68,661,300 million, originating from the Netherlands.

Four individuals associated with the shipment, including the claimant, were promptly arrested for violation of RA 9165, the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act, and RA 10863, also known as the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act (CMTA).

Commissioner Bienvenido Y. Rubio reiterated that “aligned with the directives of President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr., the BOC will continue to be vigilant and relentless in preventing the entry of illegal drugs and hazardous substances into the country.”

BOC-NAIA, under the guidance of District Collector Yasmin O. Mapa, remains committed to its mandate on revenue collection, trade facilitation, and border protection.#