Authorities arrest 6 individuals in an entrapment operation for off-spec Xian-bee fertilizers in Isabela

Written by Arwin A. Cardenas  |  Published: 28 September 2022

QUEZON, ISABELA | September 27, 2022 – Six (6) individuals were caught in the entrapment operation for transporting counterfeit fertilizer bags in the province of Isabela last September 25, 2022.

Authorities seized 305 bags of Xian-bee 14-14-14 fertilizer, Php1,000 bill, 550 pieces of one thousand boodle money used in the entrapment, one unit of white Isuzu truck with plate number CAR 7943, and one orange Toyota Hilux with plate number NBW 2411 from the arrested suspects. The estimated cost of the confiscated fertilizer was more than Php500,000.

Currently, FPA has suspended the License to Operate (LTO) and Certificate of Product Registration (CPR) of the said manufacturer in line with Memorandum Order no. 23 (dated August 12, 2022) and was given with Stop Use, Move, and Sales (SUMS) Hold Order due to manufacturing off-spec products.

The arrested suspects were brought to CIDG Cagayan PFU for documentation and disposition prior to the filing of charges in violation of RA7394 (Consumer Act of the Philippines) and Presidential Decree 1144 (An Act Regulating the Fertilizer and Pesticide Industry).

Dubbed as “OLEA-OPLAN MEGA SHOPPER,” the entrapment was a joint operation of the Cagayan Criminal Investigation and Detection Group Provincial Field Unit (CIDG), Fertilizer and Pesticide Authority (FPA), National Intelligence Coordinating Agency (NICA), Regional Special Operations Team, Provincial Intelligence Unit, Isabela Police Provincial Office, Mallig Police Station, and Quezon Police Station. ###