04 July 2005 – Chargé d’Affaires (CDA) of the Philippine Embassy in Kuala, Lumpur Malaysia Luis T. Cruz today reported to the Department of Foreign Affairs that Embassy officers are working closely with Malaysian police authorities in order to extend all possible assistance to a Filipino national who was apprehended at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport in possession of a large stash of cocaine.

CDA Cruz said that Embassy coordination with the police authorities handling the case revealed the identity of the Filipino national as Ms. Jaquiline Nino Quiemno, 25 years of age and a native of San Fernando, La Union.

The Philippine Embassy has made arrangements with the DFA Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers’ Affairs to contact the next-of-kin of Ms. Quiemno in the Philippines and inform them of the developments in the case as well as assure them of the assistance being extended by the Embassy to her.

CDA Cruz reported that he assigned Minister and Consul Antonio A. Morales and Mr. Hassanal Pedro T. Borbe, the Embassy’s assistance-to-nationals officer, to closely monitor the developments on the case and make the appropriate representations with the concerned officials.  CDA Cruz said the Embassy officers would meet with Ms. Quiemno today, 04 July 2005, if a special permission requested by the Embassy is granted by the officer-in-charge of the case under the Sepang Police District, which has jurisdiction over the Kuala Lumpur International Airport.

Following usual police procedure in Malaysia, CDA Cruz said, an accused is not given access to a lawyer or consular officials during the course of the police investigation.  According to Malaysian law, this period of detention, pending completion of the police investigation, lasts for 14 days upon arrest.  Nevertheless, the Embassy and its representatives continued to gather information and make representations in order to be able to meet with the detained Filipino at the soonest possible time.

According to information gathered by the Embassy, Ms. Quiemno was arrested on 29 June 2005 at Malaysia’s premier airport carrying in her bag five kilograms of cocaine valued at RM2 million (approximately US$540,000).  The Filipino was on a flight from Johannesburg, South Africa to Kuala Lumpur.  The report also stated that last Wednesday’s seizure is believed to be one of the largest drug busts in Malaysia involving cocaine.

CDA Cruz further informed the Department that Sepang District police authorities and the narcotics department were reported as saying that Ms. Quiemno has been helping them in their investigations and that her cooperation has led to several other arrests.  Police are continuing their investigations and are looking for links into possible larger drug syndicate operations in the region.  END
 

/jay