3 Chinese get life for 7 kilos of shabu

MANILA, Philippines - Three Chinese, including a woman, were sentenced to life imprisonment after they were caught in possession of seven kilos of shabu in 2010.

Xu Sun Xiaom alias William Chua; his wife, Shi Xiu Qin, alias Kim Sy; and Hong Wen Xian were also found guilty of selling a half kilo of shabu to undercover agents of Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA).

Parañaque Regional Trial Court Branch 259 Judge Danilo Suarez, in a ruling promulgated Thursday, ordered them to pay P6 million each for violating two provisions (Section 5 and 11) of the Dangerous Drugs Act, which bar the sale and possession of illegal drugs.

The three were arrested in a drug bust in front of a convenience store along Doña Soledad Avenue on April 18, 2010. According to the PDEA, their undercover agents contacted Chua to provide them 500 grams of shabu for P2 million.

The judge also ordered Chua and Hong’s transfer to New Bilibid Prison and Sy moved to the Correctional Institute for Women in Mandaluyong.

Their case is the second largest drug case handled by Suarez, next to the case of three Chinese drug suspects who escaped from the Parañaque City Jail last December with help of jail guards.

And their conviction came after P121 million worth of shabu had been seized by the PDEA at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) in the past two weeks. PDEA director general Jose Gutierrez Jr. said at least eight suspected couriers of an African drug syndicate have so far been arrested.

Customs Task Force on Dangerous Drugs and Controlled Chemicals head Sherwin Andrada expressed concern that the Philippines has become a dumping ground of illegal drugs, especially shabu, coming from African syndicates. At least P45 million worth of shabu were seized from a Guinea woman and a Ghanaian couple arrested at NAIA last Tuesday.