MANILA — Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Jonvic Remulla named 11 individuals as persons of interest on Friday, October 16, in connection with a thwarted drug smuggling operation involving approximately 521 kilograms of suspected shabu.
The contraband, carrying an estimated street value of ₱3.54 billion, was intercepted in Laos before it could reportedly be moved into the Philippines.
During a media briefing held at Malacañang, Remulla presented an investigative link diagram mapping out the alleged network behind the illicit cargo, which was seized at Luang Prabang International Airport in Laos on October 1.
Among the key names flagged by authorities are former Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA) parliament member Edriezan Hadji Nasser Rimbang, also known as “Sultan,” who is suspected of acting as the operation’s financier, and Police Executive Master Sergeant Aileen Jayne Manalo Mendoza assigned to the Philippine National Police – Aviation Security Group.
Rimbang previously served as a member of the inaugural BTA Parliament from 2019 to 2022, having been among the 76 officials appointed to the transition body by former President Rodrigo Duterte following the ratification of the Bangsamoro Organic Law.
The remaining individuals identified on the list include Fahad Mulok Dibarosan, a Filipino national arrested in Laos; pilot Rioklyn Pizarras Toledo, also known as “Boyet”; Abdullah Rimbang Macarimbang; Aldren Nadal Samante; Rudy Isidro; Abdulkarim Macalatas, who was allegedly designated to receive the shipment upon arrival in Manila; Christian Fabrigas; Rohaniah Rimbang; and Hilario De Vera, alias “Larry.”
Meanwhile, Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) Deputy Director General for Operations Assistant Secretary Renato Gumban disclosed that international law enforcement partners provided intelligence regarding two targeted drug shipments roughly a fortnight prior to the Laos seizure.
The second interdiction involved approximately 1,178 kilograms of suspected shabu valued at around ₱8.01 billion, which was confiscated by authorities from a fishing vessel in the Gulf of Thailand on October 7.
That operation also resulted in the apprehension of six Thai nationals comprising the boat’s crew.