The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency on Monday cited increasing incidents of trafficking of illegal drugs using mail and parcel courier service.
Director General Aaron Aquino said drug syndicates continue to transport illegal drugs through the mail and parcel courier service.
At least 35 incidents involving foreign express delivery and domestic courier services as mode of smuggling dangerous drugs into the Philippines were recorded in 2018, he said.
The number of interception of illegal drugs via courier services rose to 775 percent from four incidents in 2017 to 35 incidents in 2018.
For the period, mail and parcel interdiction operations in airports and seaports were conducted leading to the seizure of 94.67 kilos of shabu, 16,713 pieces of ecstasy tablets and 1,109.5 grams of marijuana kush, a hybrid marijuana with a total estimated market value of P672,161,877.88.
Aquino said the consignees were also arrested.
“Out of the interdiction operations conducted, 27 were interception of packages containing illegal drugs that originated from California, the United States of America,” he cited.
He credited the increase in the interception of drug-laden parcels to the enhanced capability of PDEA personnel to detect them.
PDEA agents assigned at the airports and seaports went through X-ray cargo screening training conducted by the Office of the Transportation Security.
“They regularly conduct K9 sweeping and parcel screening on all cargo terminals nationwide,” Aquino said.
He said the agency has put up three airport interdiction units, three international airport interagency interdiction task groups and 12 seaport interdiction units to abort the entry of the illegal drugs through “vulnerable” seaports and airports.
“PDEA remains vigilant to ensure packages containing illegal drugs are intercepted and kept from being delivered,” he added.