A female tattoo artist said to be bound for a competition in Kota Kinabalu was barred from boarding her flight after she was arrested at the final security checkpoint at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 3 for possession of marijuana.
Security Screening Officer (SSO) Raffy Perlas of the Office for Transportation Security (OTS) discovered and turned over to law enforcement agencies suspected illegal drugs, which were incidentally intercepted while the passenger was undergoing the routine security screening procedures on Wednesday, April 3, 2024.
The passenger identified as Jasmine Adaoal, 26, was bound for Kota Kinabalu via Air Asia flight no. Z2 503 when intercepted at the airport after authorities found approximately 3.8 grams of marijuana with a street value of P456 in her possession.
As a matter of procedure, SSO Perlas confirmed the ownership of the said baggage before conducting the usual manual inspection. The passenger who confirmed that she is the owner of the bag, was carrying sharp objects inside her baggage, which prompted for the conduct of a manual baggage inspection.
SSO Perlas, the baggage inspector at that time, intercepted a swiss knife and a scissor and discovered a plastic pouch containing some dried leaves, suspected to be illegal drugs. This prompted SSO Perlas to call the attention of the duty Checkpoint Supervisor, which immediately sought the assistance of the Philippine National Police on duty to coordinate with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA).
The PDEA officers subsequently conducted a K9 panelling on the said suspected prohibited drugs. The said substance was confirmed to be positive for Marijuana, a dangerous drug under Republic Act No. 9165.
The incident was properly recorded, and the passenger together with the pieces of evidence were turned over by the OTS to the custody of the law enforcement agencies for their disposition.
