(Photo from PDEA Top Stories)
The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) has destroyed more than ₱5.32 billion worth of illegal drugs at the Integrated Waste Management, Inc. (IWMI) facility in Barangay Aguado, Trece Martires City, Cavite.
According to PDEA, the operation involved the incineration of approximately 2,227.76 kilograms of solid drugs and 3,447.09 milliliters of liquid substances. The confiscated drugs included methamphetamine hydrochloride (shabu), marijuana, ecstasy, cocaine, toluene, ketamine, phenacetin, LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide), as well as liquid forms of cocaine, methamphetamine, and marijuana.
Among the drugs destroyed was 404.95 kilograms of shabu seized in a joint operation by PDEA, the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), and the Bureau of Customs at the Port of Manila on January 23.
PDEA Director General Undersecretary Isagani Nerez emphasized that the destruction serves to dispel public doubts about the possible recycling or resale of confiscated drugs.
“These are pieces of drug evidence confiscated during anti-drug operations conducted by PDEA and partner law enforcement agencies. Some were turned over by authorities, while others were recently ordered destroyed by the courts. All of these were incinerated inside a chamber, burned beyond recovery,” Nerez stated.
This marks the first official drug destruction operation overseen by Nerez since his appointment as PDEA Director General by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.