PDEA confirms cocaine found in Catanduanes waters

LEGAZPI CITY, Philippines — The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) confirmed on Tuesday that the seven blocks of crystalline substance fished out off  Bagamanoc town in Catanduanes province were cocaine.

Cotton Yuson, information officer of PDEA Bicol, said the blocks weighed around 7.039 kilograms with an estimated market value of P37.3 million.

Three fishermen discovered the blocks inside a black fishnet at around 1 p.m. on Monday. Each block was wrapped in brown duct tape with dollar sign markings.

READ: 7 blocks of cocaine worth P43 million found in Catanduanes waters

Yuson said they have yet to establish if the illegal drugs were related to the previously discovered cocaine in other provinces.

Early this year, authorities also reported blocks of cocaine found floating off the coast of Camarines Sur, Quezon, Siargao, and Dinagat Islands.

“In (Bicol) region, (we) do not have the capacity to conduct chemical profiling to establish whether these cocaine are all connected. The PDEA National Headquarters will be sending samples to Australia for the profiling,” she said. /ee