THE Bureau of Customs (BOC) said it has secured the conviction of three individuals in connection with the smuggling of nearly P1 billion worth of illegal drugs that entered the country through the Manila International Container Terminal in 2019.
In a decision dated Dec. 9, 2025, but only made public this week, the Regional Trial Court of Manila found Muktasil Abundol Assimudin, Emmanuel Paulo de los Reyes Landicho, and George Sim Fernandez guilty beyond a reasonable doubt for violating provisions of Republic Act 10863, also known as the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act.
Each of the accused was sentenced to reclusion perpetua and ordered to pay a P50-million fine.
The case stemmed from the seizure of around 146.81 kilograms of illegal drugs valued at approximately P998.3 million from a shipment that arrived at the port in January 2019.
Customs Commissioner Ariel Nepomuceno said the conviction demonstrated that enforcement and legal processes were functioning effectively.
“The conviction of those behind this massive drug shipment demonstrates that our enforcement and legal processes are working. We will continue to pursue every case until justice is fully upheld,” Nepomuceno said in a statement issued on Friday.
The BOC said it would continue strengthening its legal and enforcement mechanisms to ensure that smuggling cases are pursued through prosecution and conviction while observing due process under the law.
