Shabu laboratory raided in Bulacan

GUIGUINTO, Bulacan — Police raided a newly built shabu laboratory, believed to be one of the biggest uncovered so far, here yesterday, seizing chemicals and equipment valued at about P50 million.

Deputy Director General Edgar Aglipay, chief of the Anti-Illegal Drugs-Special Operations Task Force (AID-SOTF), said the shabu laboratory in Barangay Tiaong can produce about 25 to 30 kilos of shabu, worth nearly P60 million, a day.

The raid, led by elements of the Central Police District (CPD), yielded 2.5 kilos of what is believed to be shabu, 50 boxes and 100 wooden crates of chemicals and raw materials, and three sacks of ephedrine used to manufacture the illegal drug.

The raiding team arrested caretaker Israel Cruz, 24, who was hired by a certain Cheng. A 12-gauge shotgun with more than 30 shells was seized from Cruz.

Police said a Chinese national, identified as Li Liang Lee, had rented the lot where the shabu laboratory stands, for P15,000 a month from one Jaime Chua.

Li reportedly told Chua that he was constructing a factory for noodles. The building, with a floor area of 10 meters by 50 meters, is divided into four large rooms.

Superintendent Arnold Gunnacao, intelligence chief of the Bulacan police, said the shabu laboratory was set to start operation when it was discovered.

The raiding team was armed with a search warrant issued by Quezon City Regional Trial Court Judge Natividad Dizon.

Chief Superintendent Napoleon Castro, CPD director, said the raid was an offshoot of the arrests of several Chinese nationals in drug buy-busts in Quezon City.

Castro said his men placed the shabu laboratory under surveillance for two weeks, renting a house near the place and even installing hidden cameras. — With Ric Sapnu, Christina Mendez and Katherine Adraneda