Consignee in shabu shipment ordered detained at Senate
Published Sep 19, 2018 04:38 pm
By Mario Casayuran
Senator Richard J, Gordon, chairman of the Senate Blue Ribbon committee, ordered on Wednesday the temporary detention at the Senate building of a consignee who allowed her company to be the importer of P6.8 billion worth of’’ shabu’’ (crystal meth) last August.
Senator Richard Gordon ( Jansen Romero / File | Manila Bulletin)
The order to cite the consignee, Marina de la Cruz Signapan, owner of SMYD Trading, in contempt was concurred in by Sen. Gregorio B. Honasan II and Senate Minority Leader Franklin M, Drilon.
Drilon found Gordon’s action consistent with Senate rules.
Signapan admitted having allowed her firm to act as consignee for a shipment that turned out to be ‘’shabu’’ from Hong Kong via Malaysia. She said she received P180,000 of which P150,000 was for duties and taxes.
Being a senior citizen, Signapan pleaded with Gordon to be kind to her after insisting that the money came from Joel Maritana who admitted having done so on orders of Jimmy Guban, of the Bureau of Customs Intelligence and Investigation Service (CIIS).
‘’Huwag naman po, Mr, Senator,’’ she pleaded after Gordon waited for the arrival of his colleagues to make official his decision to cite her in contempt.
She earlier sought the advice of her lawyer, Trina San Diego.
Gordon observed that drug smugglers have been using Filipino traders as ‘’consignees for hire.’’
Guban, who has been locked up at the office of the Sergeant at Arms (OSAA). was reportedly acting on orders of Police Senior Superintendent Eduardo P. Acierto who is now on the lam.
He also pleaded to be released because he could not have a good night sleep at the OSAA but Gordon turned down his request.
Acierto has a pending arrest warrant from the Ombudsman on an arms smuggling case at the waterfront.
Gordon said Acierto ‘’is the missing link’’ to the smuggling of the drugs brought in by four Chinese.
Acierto reportedly directed Guban to find a consignee for a shipment.
Aquino told Gordon that he informed Acierto that the Senate committee wanted to talk to him but that Acierto has not received an invitation for him to attend the committee hearing.
Gordon said he would seek the help of Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter S. Cayetano in seeking international help for the arrest of the four Chinese after the PDEA has gotten the profile of the four who are believed to be Hong Kong residents.
Gordon expressed alarm at the ability of illegal drugs syndicates to bring in ‘’shabu’’ worth billions of pesos as Philippine Drugs Enforcement Agency (PDEA) Director General Aaron N. Aquino earlier told Bulletin that drug lords are no longer able to manufacture ‘’shabu’’ locally, and are left with no choice but to import them.
The shipment that arrived but slipped out of the Manila International Container Port (MICP) prompted Senators Emmanuel Pacquiao, Drilon, Antonio Trllanes IV, Paolo Benigno Aquino IV, Leila de Lima and Risa Hontiveros to call for a Senate probe.
The estimated missing P6.8 billion worth of ‘’shabu’’ was uncovered after a follow-up operation in a warehouse at the General Mariano Alvarez (GMA) in Cavite where 500 kilos of ‘’shabu’’ worth P:4.3 billion inside two lifters were seized at the Manila International Container Port (MICP) last July.
‘Despite the steadfast war against drugs by the Duterte administration, ‘’drug syndicates seem to have maintained links with government officials or employees who willingly facilitate the entry of contrabands into the country,’’ Pacquiao noted.
‘’We need to address the apparent lack of coordination among the government agencies tasked to eliminate illegal drugs trade in the country, namely the Bureau of Customs, PDEA and the PNP,’’ he added.
Senator Richard Gordon ( Jansen Romero / File | Manila Bulletin)
The order to cite the consignee, Marina de la Cruz Signapan, owner of SMYD Trading, in contempt was concurred in by Sen. Gregorio B. Honasan II and Senate Minority Leader Franklin M, Drilon.
Drilon found Gordon’s action consistent with Senate rules.
Signapan admitted having allowed her firm to act as consignee for a shipment that turned out to be ‘’shabu’’ from Hong Kong via Malaysia. She said she received P180,000 of which P150,000 was for duties and taxes.
Being a senior citizen, Signapan pleaded with Gordon to be kind to her after insisting that the money came from Joel Maritana who admitted having done so on orders of Jimmy Guban, of the Bureau of Customs Intelligence and Investigation Service (CIIS).
‘’Huwag naman po, Mr, Senator,’’ she pleaded after Gordon waited for the arrival of his colleagues to make official his decision to cite her in contempt.
She earlier sought the advice of her lawyer, Trina San Diego.
Gordon observed that drug smugglers have been using Filipino traders as ‘’consignees for hire.’’
Guban, who has been locked up at the office of the Sergeant at Arms (OSAA). was reportedly acting on orders of Police Senior Superintendent Eduardo P. Acierto who is now on the lam.
He also pleaded to be released because he could not have a good night sleep at the OSAA but Gordon turned down his request.
Acierto has a pending arrest warrant from the Ombudsman on an arms smuggling case at the waterfront.
Gordon said Acierto ‘’is the missing link’’ to the smuggling of the drugs brought in by four Chinese.
Acierto reportedly directed Guban to find a consignee for a shipment.
Aquino told Gordon that he informed Acierto that the Senate committee wanted to talk to him but that Acierto has not received an invitation for him to attend the committee hearing.
Gordon said he would seek the help of Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter S. Cayetano in seeking international help for the arrest of the four Chinese after the PDEA has gotten the profile of the four who are believed to be Hong Kong residents.
Gordon expressed alarm at the ability of illegal drugs syndicates to bring in ‘’shabu’’ worth billions of pesos as Philippine Drugs Enforcement Agency (PDEA) Director General Aaron N. Aquino earlier told Bulletin that drug lords are no longer able to manufacture ‘’shabu’’ locally, and are left with no choice but to import them.
The shipment that arrived but slipped out of the Manila International Container Port (MICP) prompted Senators Emmanuel Pacquiao, Drilon, Antonio Trllanes IV, Paolo Benigno Aquino IV, Leila de Lima and Risa Hontiveros to call for a Senate probe.
The estimated missing P6.8 billion worth of ‘’shabu’’ was uncovered after a follow-up operation in a warehouse at the General Mariano Alvarez (GMA) in Cavite where 500 kilos of ‘’shabu’’ worth P:4.3 billion inside two lifters were seized at the Manila International Container Port (MICP) last July.
‘Despite the steadfast war against drugs by the Duterte administration, ‘’drug syndicates seem to have maintained links with government officials or employees who willingly facilitate the entry of contrabands into the country,’’ Pacquiao noted.
‘’We need to address the apparent lack of coordination among the government agencies tasked to eliminate illegal drugs trade in the country, namely the Bureau of Customs, PDEA and the PNP,’’ he added.