COCAINE FIND. Policemen in Basco, Batanes inspect the packages turned over by fisherman Roger Gabotero (in white shirt), who retrieved them from the sea near the Naidi Lighthouse on Tuesday, April 16, 2019. The packages contain suspected cocaine weighing one kilogram with an estimated street value of P5.7 million. (Photo courtesy of PNP-Basco)
TUGUEGARAO CITY -- Three sealed plastic packs containing a kilogram of what is believed to be cocaine with an estimated PHP5.7-million street value were found by a fisherman off the sea near the Naidi Lighthouse in Basco, Batanes on Tuesday.
Brig. Gen. Jose Mario Espino, Cagayan Valley regional police director, said fisherman Roger Gallo Gabotero of Kayhuvukan village found the three sealed packs.
One of the packages was wrapped with a white plastic, another with a green foil written with "Guanyinwang refined Chinese tea" and Chinese characters and the other one has red letter "A" marking.
Gabotero surrendered the items to the Basco police after retrieving them from the sea. The packages were later turned over to the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency-Region 2 for laboratory examination.
Col. Merwin Cuarteros, Batanes police director, has deployed teams to scour the sea and seashores to possibly retrieve other items.
"This is a part of our relentless drive against illegal drugs," he said.
On February 5, 2018, two fishermen retrieved from the seashore in Barangay Dipudo, Divilacan, Isabela, a blue container containing 18.84 kgs of cocaine worth PHP79 million. (PNA)
