PDEA-National Capital Region chief Senior Superintendent Abe Lemos said the cash and the portable vault would be subjected to laboratory tests to confirm their findings.
"We will have the vault and the money checked at the laboratory to determine if there were indeed traces of shabu," said Lemos, who led a series of PDEA raids at the corner of Buendia Avenue and Tramo in Pasay City.
He pointed out that the Buedia-Tramo area has been tagged as a "shabu farmacia" as illegal drugs, particularly shabu, is readily available to customers just like at a drugstore.
An average of 500 grams of shabu are reportedly sold daily in the area.
Lemos said they placed the area under surveillance and identified three suspected drugs pushers — Francisco Bonus alias Paking Bukol, Archie Navarette and Roberto Quijano.
Armed with search warrants issued by Manila Judges Antonio Eugenio Jr. and Felixberto Olalia, PDEA agents swooped down on the houses of the three suspected pushers.
The raid resulted in the arrest of Bonus and Quijano and the seizure of of 60 grams of shabu. Police said Navarette could not be located during the raid, prompting agents to pick up her parents, who according to Lemos, would be tested for shabu use.
"It was inside Navarette’s house that a drug-sniffing dog suddenly sat on the steel portable vault. We knew there was shabu inside. To make sure, we used another K-9 dog to sniff the portable vault. The dog showed the same behavior," Lemos said.
The PDEA-NCR chief said it was hard to imagine how Navarette or her parents could have half a million stashed at their house. "Imagine, parang squatters’ area yung lugar nila. Baka nga kita sa pagbenta ng shabu."
Lemos said they would submit as part of their exhibit in court the cash and the shabu seized from Navarette’s house.
Some 10 grams of shabu was also seized in her house.
During the raid at Bonus’ house, shabu was seized after the drug-sniffing dog sat near a wooden cabinet.
Some 29 grams of shabu in a plastic bag were found inside the cabinet.
Another 10 grams of shabu were seized from Quijano.
"The shabu seized was ready to be sold on the street," Lemos said. "Pagbago ka sa lugar, lalapitan ka na agad ng mga ito at aalukin ka, ganyan kalalakas ang loob magbenta ng mga iyan."
Although the shabu trade at Buendia-Tramo area paled in comparison to the compared to drug tiangge in Pasig City, Lemos said this was still cause for alarm.
"Pag hindi na-check ang bentahan ng shabu sa Pasay ay hindi nalalayo na magkaroon din dito ng compound tulad ng sa Pasig City," he said.