PERSONNEL from the Bureau of Customs (BOC) discovered 7,335 grams of marijuana kush from three unclaimed pieces of luggage abandoned by passengers at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) on Oct. 26, the agency said on Wednesday.
BOC officials said the contraband items were concealed in food-labelled aluminum packaging when they arrived in Manila.
The BOC discovered the suspected illegal drugs during routine x-ray screening, manual inspection and K9 paneling by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency. According to the BOC, the items were linked to two passengers who arrived from Bangkok, Thailand, on Sept. 24, with the seized substances.
Operatives present during the inspection included the NAIA Inter-Agency Drug Interdiction Task Group and the Philippine National Police-Aviation Security Group.
Meanwhile, the Office for Transportation Security has canceled the vacation leaves of some 2,529 security screening officers to be deployed in airports, seaports, bus terminals, and rail stations nationwide to ensure sufficient personnel and uninterrupted security screening operations during All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day.
Also, the agency will activate its Transportation Operation Center for monitoring, coordination and dissemination of security information.
Regular maintenance of security screening equipment will also be conducted to prevent technical issues and minimize downtime during the holiday rush.
