PDEA 7 and law enforcement units seized 41 kilograms of shabu worth ₱278.8 million in Barangay Mabolo, Cebu City, on Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026.
Acting Assistant Director Thessa Tiuzen stated the suspect drove an SUV carrying the imported Chinese tea bag-packaged drugs from Mindanao via a roll-on/roll-off vessel.
The suspect was paid ₱10,000 weekly for deliveries, including to Barangay Duljo-Fatima, while PDEA 7 conducts backtracking and forensic examination of his cellphone.
THE 41 kilograms of shabu worth P278.8 million seized by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) 7 agents and other law enforcement units in Barangay Mabolo, Cebu City, on Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026, came from Mindanao, the agency said.
The suspect, whose real name was not divulged by PDEA 7, told investigators that he drove a sport utility vehicle (SUV) containing the shabu aboard a roll-on/roll-off vessel, according to Thessa Tiuzen, acting assistant director of PDEA 7.
Investigators have yet to determine which port in Cebu the vehicle was unloaded at. The agency’s intelligence unit is tracing the shipment’s route and the people involved in transporting the drugs.
Imported drug shipment
Tiuzen said the packaging suggested that the shabu was imported. Like drugs seized in previous operations by the police and PDEA 7, the shipment was packed in Chinese tea bags.
PDEA 7 declined to provide further details about the source of the drugs while the investigation and preparations for possible follow-up operations continued.
Tracing the suspect’s network
Investigators are also tracking down the suspect’s associates in Cebu City and identifying the people to whom he delivered the illegal drugs.
“We are backtracking to determine where the drugs came from, who his associates in Cebu are and where the rest of the drugs were headed because the shipment was quite large,” Tiuzen said in Cebuano.
Weekly payment for deliveries
The suspect allegedly admitted that his contact paid him P10,000 a week for successful deliveries.
One of the areas where he delivered the illegal drugs was Barangay Duljo-Fatima. The remaining shipment was intended for other locations in the Visayas.
PDEA 7 will subject the cellphone seized from the suspect to forensic examination to help identify the suppliers of the 41 kilograms of shabu. / AYB