Gordon insists magnetic lifters contained drugs

Sen. Richard Gordon believes that the shipment of magnetic lifters found in a Cavite warehouse last month did contain illegal drugs based on testimonies in the blue ribbon committee inquiry into the alleged P6.8 billion “shabu” (crystal meth) smuggling case.

The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) had said the shipment of four lifters contained an estimated P6.8 billion worth of shabu that had been taken out, citing the reaction of its drug-sniffing dog.

But this was disputed by the Bureau of Customs (BOC), which said the magnetic lifters tested negative for illegal drugs.

President Rodrigo Duterte took the BOC’s side and said the PDEA’s statement was “pure speculation.” The PDEA has stood pat on its finding.

Gordon said testimonies indicated there were drugs in the lifters, and said authorities should continue to investigate the matter “to its conclusion.”

“I do not believe that there were no drugs. You can tell the President that I said so, because that was clear, that came out in the hearing,” he said.

Mr. Duterte might have believed the report given to him that the test on the magnetic lifters did not detect traces of illegal drugs, he said.

According to Gordon, it came out in the hearing that after the magnetic lifters were brought to the warehouse in General Mariano Alvarez, Cavite, Chinese-looking men came to see the shipment.

They spent four hours inside the warehouse and brought with them a car where they could have stored the drugs taken from the lifters, he said.

There were already holes in the lifters when the authorities came to seize these, the senator added.

Gordon said the magnetic lifters found in Cavite were similar to the ones that were abandoned at the Manila International Container Port in June, and which contained 500 kilograms worth of shabu.

“We should not let this pass because this is big. There is an invasion of heavy deliveries of drugs using very-difficult-to-discover methodology,” he said.

The Philippines is being targeted by Chinese drug lords, and the Philippine National Police and Department of Foreign Affairs must work to stop this, he added.