Mindanao politician linked to Laos drug case faced past drug cases – PNP

MANILA, Philippines — The politician from Mindanao who allegedly financed the chartered flight linked to the 521-kilogram shabu seizure in Laos had previously been involved in illegal drug cases, the Philippine National Police (PNP) said Friday.

The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) earlier dentified the financier behind the drug operation as being based in Mindanao.

READ: Mindanao politician financed flight linked to Laos drug seizure – PDEA

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“Yes, he is involved previously na sa mga drug cases,” PNP public information chief Col. Allen Rae Co said at a press briefing.

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(Yes, he was previously involved in drug cases.)

When asked if the individual was included in the previous list of narco-politicians mentioned by former President Rodrigo Duterte in 2019, Co declined to answer.

He also did not provide further information about the politician’s identity, saying it might compromise the ongoing investigation and planned operations.

Co said the politician had the financial means to pay for the flight, which reportedly cost US$49,500, or about P3.1 million, to transport drugs estimated to be worth P3.5 billion.

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“Unang-una, siya po yung nagbayad talaga noong pag-charter ng plane. And since yung cargo ay illegal drugs, it’s not covered technically by official receipts, ‘di ba? But yung lumalabas sa investigation nga ay siya rin of course ang nagbayad doon sa cargo na yun,” Co said.

(First of all, he was the one who actually paid when the plane was chartered. And since the cargo was illegal drugs, it’s not technically covered by official receipts, right? But what comes out of the investigation is that he of course paid for that cargo.)

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“And he is the intended recipient, kaya nga he was the one who chartered a private jet to bring it to the country,” he added.

(And he was the intended recipient; that’s why he chartered a private jet to bring it into the country.)

Co also said the PNP’s information on the incident is the same as the information gathered by the PDEA.

PDEA spokesperson Atty. Joseph Frederick Calulut said in an interview on Thursday that the alleged financier was an elected official opposed to the current administration. He did not identify the politician.

Aside from the politician, the PDEA earlier identified two Filipinos—with aliases Fahad and Boyet—who were allegedly involved in the drug bust.

Fahad, a Filipino passenger, was arrested at an airport in Laos and is expected to face legal charges there.

Boyet, who allegedly arranged the private jet to transport illegal drugs, was last reported to be in Hong Kong.

Meanwhile, the National Bureau of Investigation earlier said that it has identified 10 persons of interest in the alleged smuggling operation but did not confirm whether the politician, Fahad, and Boyet are among them. 

READ: NBI has 10 persons of interest in alleged Laos-PH drug smuggling op

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The drugs were reportedly set to be transported on a private jet booked on Sept. 23, about a week before Laotian authorities seized them at Luang Prabang International Airport on Oct. 1./dp