PDEA raids ecstasy, ‘shabu’ lab in Malabon

DRUG RAID The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency finds various equipment for making “shabu” and ecstasy at a clandestine laboratory in Barangay Tinajeros, Malabon City, on April 13.—NIÑO JESUS ORBETA

A day after raiding a “shabu” (crystal meth) laboratory in Batangas, operatives of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) on Friday swooped down on a Malabon warehouse—located just meters away from a public elementary school—allegedly being used to manufacture meth and ecstasy.

Speaking to reporters, PDEA Director General Aaron Aquino said the laboratory, which was discovered in a residential area in Barangay Tinajeros, was part of the operations of the Hong Kong-based Dragonwood syndicate.

Golden Triangle cartel

The said group was allegedly connected to the notorious Golden Triangle cartel, which smuggles drugs through the borders of Myanmar, Laos and Thailand, he added.

The raid was a follow-up operation to the discovery of a shabu and ecstasy laboratory in Sto. Niño, Batangas province where eight people, including four suspected Chinese chemists, were arrested.

PDEA spokesperson Derrick Carreon said that while there were no “finished products” seized in the Malabon laboratory, agents discovered large quantities of safrole, a key ingredient in ecstasy production; suspected ecstasy tablets, assorted chemicals and several drug equipment.

Chinese national nabbed

Chinese national Jiang Minshan, who allegedly oversaw the laboratory’s operations, and his driver Lauro Santiago were also collared during Friday’s operations.

According to Aquino, the Malabon warehouse was being used as an “test run” location for the production of illegal drugs before they were transferred to the Batangas farm.

Tip from China

He said they had been monitoring the laboratory since September last year after receiving a tip from the Office of the National Narcotics Control Commission of the Ministry of Public Security of China that narcotics chemists were being flown to Manila from Beijing, China.

Though the warehouse was alarmingly close to civilians, especially students who attended Tinajeros Elementary School just a few hundred meters away, Aquino said the laboratory never reached “full operations.”

Smell of ‘human waste’

Residents asked by the Inquirer said they never smelled anything from the warehouse except the faint smell of “human waste.”

The laboratory, as it turned out, also housed large quantities of ammonia.

Senior Supt. John Chua, Malabon police chief, said they had yet to find out who owned the warehouse and what kind of permit they had to operate in a residential area.