Bureau of Customs (BOC) intelligence and investigation agents assigned at the Manila International Container Port have seized P29 million worth of suspected kush oil and dried marijuana found hidden in two balikbayan boxes.
The shipment, which arrived in North Harbor Manila from Canada, were initially declared to contain used household goods and personal effects. It was consigned to a residence in General Trias, Cavite.
Customs Commissioner Bienvenido Rubio denounced the scheme of smuggling illegal drugs through balikbayan boxes, saying it degrades the “very Filipino act of sending gifts to their loved ones in the Philippines.
“You know, balikbayan boxes are very Filipino. This is ingrained into our culture and our tradition that wherever we are, we send balikbayan boxes back to our loved ones here in the Philippines because it shows we care. Using them for something illegal is an insult to our hardworking OFWs and their families who look forward to receiving even the simplest gifts contained in these boxes,” Rubio said.
According to Customs intelligence chief Verne Enciso, the balikbayan boxes already underwent thorough physical examination by Customs examiners at the MICP.
“We received derogatory information about these two balikbayan boxes and immediately processed the proper documents to have them inspected. The examination found a total of 20,990 grams of kush and one liter of liquid substance we suspect to be kush oil,” he said.
The first box contained 20 vacuum-sealed plastic pouches, totalling to 9,809 grams, of kush, and one liter of liquid substance.
The second box had 23 vacuum-sealed plastic pouches, totalling to 11,181 grams, of kush.
Enciso said the 43 vacuum-sealed plastic pouches of kush and one liter of liquid substance had an estimated total street value of P29,386,000.
The examination of the balikbayan boxes was witnessed by representatives from the CIIS, Enforcement and Security Service (ESS), Customs Anti-Illegal Drug Task Force (CAIDTF), Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA), Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), X-ray Inspection Project (XIP), and Office of the District Collector (ODC).
The samples from the suspected marijuana were also turned over to Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency for confirmatory testing.