Crime | PJ discovers drug trafficking case

The Judiciary Police (PJ) has apprehended three suspects accused of drug trafficking, PJ reported yesterday.
The three suspects are all Filipino nationals. The first suspect, named Tabora, is 22 years old and a non-permanent Macau resident. The second suspect is named Ballentos, 33, who is an overstayer. The final suspect is a 32-year-old called Aguilar who is a permanent Macau resident.
According to police information, the three were recruited by a Hong Kong drug trafficking group to sell drugs in Macau.
On November 23, the drugs were hidden inside small wooden sculptures and were shipped from Thailand to Macau.
In total, the police authority seized small wooden sculptures containing four small packs of methamphetamine with a total net weight of 260 grams, worth about 858,000 patacas.
Tabora and Ballentos are accused of collecting the shipping parcels and the third suspect is suspected of being the lookout for the other two.
Tabora and Ballentos admitted to their crimes and confessed that they were offered 10,000 patacas and 4,000 patacas as payment respectively. Aguilar denied the accusations.
All three tested positive for traces of methamphetamine in their systems.
Yesterday, PJ transferred the three to the prosecution authority under the charges of consuming and trafficking drugs.
Earlier in October, a case of drug trafficking using express courier services was busted by the PJ, seizing 1.64 million patacas worth of cocaine.
In addition to the seized substance, a man and a woman were arrested on the charges of drug trafficking and drug use.
The male suspect is 33 years old and the female is 34. Both are non-resident workers from the Philippines. The man works as a barber and the woman is a domestic helper.