Police seek tighter control over balikbayan boxes after huge shabu bust

Philippines National Police called for stricter guidlines on inspection of Balikbayan boxes arriving in the country after they intercepted 40 million peso worth of shabu at Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Manila.

The discovery on Monday uncovered what is part of a large drug syndicate behind the attempt to smuggle the large drug shipment into the Philippines. 

The recipient of the box, Danilo Pineda, was arrested at the airport after his attempt to claim the shipment which was marked as “water pumps only.”

The box contained the water pumps noted but stuffed inside the pumps was the shabu. 

The shipment originated from Taiwan and has passed through Hong Kong before eventually entering the Philippines.