A house full of ephedrine

Nineteen boxes containing some 500 kilograms of ephedrine, a key ingredient in the manufacture of shabu, were discovered yesterday in a Quezon City townhouse unit occupied by one of the four Chinese men recently arrested in Cavite by the Philippine National Police (PNP).

PNP chief Director General Hermogenes Ebdane Jr. and Deputy Director General Edgar Aglipay, led the raid on Unit 9 of the Horseshoe Townhomes located at the corner of Benitez and Matipuno streets in Barangay Horseshoe in Quezon City.

Police swooped down on the townhouse almost 12 hours after a concerned resident informed the PNP that one of the four suspects nabbed in the raid of a shabu laboratory last Saturday was the same person who stayed at the unit. Police identified the suspect as Leandro Go.

According to police investigators, the informant was able to identify Go through published photos in newspapers and television news reports.

It took the police some 18 hours before being able to secure the search warrant from Quezon City Executive Judge Natividad Giron Dizon.

A combined team of local police from the PNP’s special task force on illegal drugs and the Quezon City Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) unit guarded the area since Monday night, awaiting for the issuance of the search warrant from the QC court.

The seized evidence was brought to the PNP Crime Laboratory for safekeeping.

Interior and Local Government Secretary Jose Lina Jr. extended the congratulatory remarks of President Arroyo to top PNP officials and representatives of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) for their accomplishment.

Lina said the ephedrine was found in the 19 boxes at the basement of the two-story townhouse.

"If converted, this ingredient can make about a half ton, or 500 kilos of shabu. With this seizure, we prevented again the manufacture and sale of about 500 kilos of shabu," said Lina.

Aglipay said the raid was part of the continuous operations that began with the discovery of a shabu laboratory in Silang, Cavite. Four Chinese nationals and two Filipino caretakers were arrested in the breakthrough raid.

Shabu laboratories in Las Piñas, and Parañaque were later raided by the combined police and PDEA agents since Sunday.

PNP director for community relations Director Ricardo de Leon attributed the discovery of the large quantities of raw materials for shabu in Quezon City to the vigilance of the community and good police work.

Central Police District director Chief Superintendent Napoleon Castro said two other Chinese nationals, identified as Jackson Dy and Jason Go were named by the residents and barangay officials as the ones who leased the unit for a year for P18,000 a month. They have been staying at the place for a month now.

Police investigators are trying to establish the ownership of the black Honda Civic found in the parking area.