Over P1-B in cocaine bricks found in Philippine waters

Authorities have seized a billion pesos' worth of cocaine from Philippine waters since February this year, the Philippine National Police said Friday.

PNP spokesman Bernard Banac said a total of 228 kilos of cocaine priced at P5 million a kilo has been found in different provinces in the Philippines from February to April. The haul includes 40 blocks of cocaine recovered by a fisherman in Burgos, Surigao del Norte last April 7.

• 40 bloke ng cocaine nakuha sa dagat sa Surigao Del Norte

Cocaine blocks have also been found in waters off Quezon, Dinagat Island, Surigao Del Sur, Camarines Norte, and Camarines Sur.

The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency earlier said the cocaine blocks have only been found in the Philippines.

"Only the Philippines has that incident, even the US DEA told me that it's a mystery. They, too, can't give a proper assessment on why there are floating cocaine packages," agency director Aaron Aquino told radio DZMM.

• Floating cocaine bricks found only in the Philippines - PDEA

PDEA suspects that the Philippines was used as a transshipment point for the cocaine packages that could have been bound for China, Hong Kong, Australia, which have booming demands for the narcotics.

President Duterte has said "things have worsened" in the government's anti-narcotics drive and that police officers "are at the brink of surrendering."

• PNP echoes Duterte: PH drug situation has 'worsened'