Townsfolk believe magnetic lifters did contain illegal drugs

Residents and officials of a village in General Mariano Alvarez (GMA) town in Cavite said they were convinced that the magnetic lifters recently seized in a warehouse there by antinarcotics agents were used to smuggle tons of illegal drugs despite President Rodrigo Duterte’s dismissal of the claim as “pure speculation.”

Roger Llames, chair of Barangay F. Reyes, said he found it suspicious that the tenants of the warehouse never came back to claim their heavy equipment.

The four magnetic lifters, normally used to lift cars, loose steel bars and other heavy metals, were being guarded by the local police and agents of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA).

On Friday, agents of the National Bureau of Investigation went to the warehouse, surrounded by houses and other warehouses, to investigate.

Lawmakers have called for an inquiry after PDEA Director Aaron Aquino said the magnetic lifters could have carried as much as a ton of “shabu” (crystal meth) worth P6.8 billion.