DRUG enforcers have uncovered a huge shabu laboratory in Virac, Catanduanes, which supposedly supplies illegal drugs in the province of Albay, causing a stir among politicians in the Bicol region.
Operatives of the Anti-illegal Drug Special Operation Task Force Group, Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency, the Army’s 83rd Infantry Batallion and Military Intelligence Group 5 raided the laboratory located inside a warehouse that sits on a 1,000- square meter lot on Saturday.
The authorities said the laboratory, which is surrounded by closed-circuit cameras, can produce 500 to 1,000 kilos of shabu, worth P25 million, every week.
During the raid, the authorities also found several chemicals and equipment used in manufacturing the illegal substance.
The discovery of the shabu laboratory was based on the information provided by arrested drug suspects in Tabaco, Albay and an investigation showed that the electricity of the warehouse jumped from P1,000 per month to P50,000
Investigation also showed that the property was owned by Angelica Balmadrid, wife of National Bureau of Investigation agent Eric Isidoro, assigned to the anti-illegal drug team in Manila.
But Balmadrid said she leased the property to one Jayson Gonzales Uy, also known as Paolo Uy, in March 2015.
The drug enforcers said they could have arrested key suspects in the case but Virac Regional Trial Court Judge Lelu Contreras, who is assigned to attend to drug-related cases, refused to issue a warrant.
The agents were also puzzled how a 37.5-kv transformer was placed inside the warehouse premises when it did not even have a building permit.
In response, Virac Mayor Samuel Laynes said he was surprised he is being implicated in the issue and vehemently denied allegations that he owned the contractor of the warehouse that was turned into a shabu factory.
The drug enforcers said Laynes was once seen inside the shabu factory in the company of Gil Balmadrid, brother of Angelica Balmadrid, and businessman Alex Ang Hong.
Catanduanes Gov. Joseph Cua, a close ally of Laynes, also denied involvement in illegal drugs despite the conviction of a relative on drug charges. Cua claimed he acquired his wealth from legitimate sources which have expanded from the town of San Andres to Virac over the last 20 years.