PDEA boosts antidrug war with new grads

PDEA Director Aaron Aquino (File photo by NOY MORCOSO / INQUIRER.net)

The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) will infuse new blood in its antinarcotics operations, deploying most of its newly graduated agents to the seaports and some of them to the illegal drug money trail.

According to PDEA Director General Aaron Aquino, most of the 126 members of the PDEA Academy’s Maragtala class will be deployed to the 13 main seaports and 1,200 private seaports nationwide while a handful will be assigned to the agency’s Financial Investigation Unit.

Aquino said 110 of the new agents will be tasked to scrutinize cargo entering through the seaports and will work closely with the Bureau of Customs to detect and intercept illegal drugs.