15 students caught with marijuana bricks in Mountain Province

BAGUIO CITY, Philippines – Fifteen students, including minoros and a Nigerian national, were caught inside a white Hi-Ace Grandia with 56 marijuana bricks and other marijuana products after an inspection Monday night, December 4, at Sabangan, Mountain Province.

The Sabangan police said they got a tip that the vehicle with contraband would be passing by that night on its way back to Baguio. A checkpoint was set up at Poblacion, Sabangan. The Hi-Ace Grandia, with plate number A2 N747, was driven by 54-year-old Bayani Malang from Tondo, Manila.

Among the students in the van were 4 minors, two Filipino-Americans, and a Nigerian national. They were residents of San Fernando City in La Union and Manila.

Police said when they opened the van, they could smell marijuana smoke inside. Their initial search yielded a cellophane of marijuana from the bag of one of the students. When the police opened their bags at the back of the van, they yielded 56 marijuana bricks and 4 bundles of marijuana stalks. They have yet to determine the street value of the contraband.

Last November 27, the Sabangan police set up a checkpoint in Lagan village and caught a Honda City with 7 kilograms of dried marijuana leaves, buds, and stems. There were 6 passengers in the car. – Rappler.com