Okey. So, the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency or PDEA is incorrect. It is not two tons but just 1.4 tons, according to Philippine National Police (PNP) spokesperson Jean Fajardo. The 2 tons figure is just a visual estimate, says Fajardo and the total or real figure is 1.4 tons. So there.

Question 1: Who was arrested at the Alitagtag town checkpoint? According to sources, only one person, whom reports say is a driver? Where are his escorts? Is he so stupid to drive to the warehouse where he took the shabu and drive himself all the way to Alitagtag town without receiving any report that there’s a checkpoint there?

Reports identified him as Police then arrested the driver identified as 47-year old Alajon Michael Zarate, 47; a resident of Quezon City. Something does not add up with this Zarate. Initial probe says that Zarate is a resident of Project 4 Quezon city and operates a firm in Angeles Pampanga. He is also a former US military and reportedly a fitness trainer of big name members of the showbiz community.

Question 2: Fajardo says the markings in the shabu haul are different from the ones seized in previous anti-drug operations, suggesting that this is a different drug syndicate. This is an operational detail which she should not have shared with the public, because the public did not know how relevant this fact is. Why publicly announce this specific detail?

Answer: maybe some authorities want nothing more than communicate with their intended targets?

Question 3: Several people shared in their online posts of the connexion between this drug haul and the alleged seizure of drugs at a house in Ayala Alabang reportedly owned by a certain Mark Anthony Sayarot. Some online posts insinuate that Sayarot is connected with TAPE president Bullet Jalosjos. This is highly unusual and unverified. People should stop this since there is no concrete evidence linking the two together.

Upon checking, Sayarot has been arrested together with two foreign nationals, one of them a French guy last 2022 see link: https://pnp.gov.ph/pdea-and-pnp-operations-yield-20-kilos-of-shabu-worth-136m/

One report says these suspects arrested during the November 2022 raid at Ayala Alabang belonged to a “Mexican, Canadian and Australian” drug syndicate which was not identified see link: https://journalnews.com.ph/p136m-shabu-seized-5-suspects-nabbed-in-muntinlupa-drug-sting/#google_vignette

This syndicate is possibly connected with the Mexican drug cartel Sinaloa see link: https://edition.cnn.com/2024/04/11/australia/australia-drugs-meth-mexican-cartels-intl-hnk/index.html. Another possibility is that this is the handiwork of the Sam Gor, whose criminal associates are linked with Tse Chi Lop, a Chinese Canadian now behind bars for widespread trafficking throughout Asia, particularly Southeast.

Sinaloa, a Mexican drug syndicate, is reportedly very active in Batangas province. The fact is, Batangas seemed to be their haven since, in the past, several Canadians and their Filipino drug counterparts had been arrested there since 2012 see link: https://thediplomat.com/2014/01/philippine-police-sinaloa-cartel-hitmen-have-targeted-arrested-members/.

An arrested Sinaloa member by the name of Jorge Torres and a certain Herrera were reportedly targetted for assassination by the syndicate. Former president Rodrigo Roa Duterte confirmed that the Sinaloa is operating in the Philippines see link: https://globalnation.inquirer.net/142329/duterte-sinaloa-drug-cartel-is-actively-operating-in-ph