Cops nab 3, seize truckload of illegal coco lumber in Quezon
LUCENA CITY—Police arrested Monday three persons transporting illegal coconut lumber in a truck in Sariaya town, Quezon province.
Sariaya police reported Tuesday that cops flagged down Isuzu aluminum closed van loaded with freshly sawn coconut lumber totaling around 3,500 board feet (8.25 cubic meters) at a checkpoint along the Maharlika Highway on Barangay Sampaloc 2 around 9:30 p.m.
The report said truck driver Arthur Urgelles and his helpers, Ronald Talento and Ardy Amarillo, failed to show a permit from the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA) giving them authority to cut and transport the coconut lumber.
The Coconut Preservation Act of 1995 prohibits the cutting of coconut trees unless the local PCA permits it.
The seized illegal coconut lumber is worth P52,000 in the underground market, the police said.
The police impounded the vehicle and the lumber, to be taken to the PCA office in Lucena City for proper disposition.
The suspects were detained at the local police jail.
