NBI nabs giant pearl sellers

The confiscated pearls and clams presented by the NBI on Tuesday reportedly came from Palawan. —GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE

The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) has arrested 10 people allegedly engaged in illegal wildlife trade, recovering a trove of pearls and endangered giant clams that they were selling for a whopping P97 million.

In a press conference on Tuesday, NBI officials said the suspects sold pearls at “P150,000 per kilo” to undercover agents who met them for a transaction on Kalaw Street, Manila, on Monday.

The pearls and clams were reportedly sourced from Palawan. The suspects, who were from Tarlac province, were ready with pearls weighing up to 30 kilos each.

The bureau started planning the entrapment operation in December last year after receiving information that certain individuals from Tarlac were looking for buyers of pearls and giant clams locally known as Taklobo (scientific name: Tridacna gigas).

Last month, an informant helped undercover agents establish links with the sellers, who agreed to a meeting and first showed photos of pearls still attached to the clams.

In the ensuing negotiation, the suspects agreed to sell a collection of pearls and clams for P97 million. The items were loaded in three vehicles when seized by the NBI.

Believed to be mere middlemen helping marine life poachers find buyers, the suspects remained in detention on Tuesday and were charged with violating the Philippine Fisheries Code of 1998, according to lawyer Eric Nuqui, chief of NBI’s environmental crime division.

NBI Deputy Director Ferdinand Lavin identified them as Jonathan Aceres, Gerardo Cerezo, Manuel Tempra, Norberto Enverzo, Victor Aceres, Jesusalora Oliva, Vincent Tanggara, Dixie Marie Madridano, Natranillo Lariosa and Nonita Grandia.