THE National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) seized 20 to 30 Philippine geckos at a house in Morales Village, Matina, Davao City, Monday afternoon.
Armed with a search warrant, issued by Regional Trial Court branch 12 Judge George Omelio, NBI agents recovered around 20 to 30 tuko from the house of one Mr. Wang and Mr. Kim, reportedly Korean nationals.
Lawyer Arcelito Albao, NBI spokesperson, said they were not able to arrest the suspects since the latter were not anymore in the country.
"Sa pag adto namo didto, ang naa lang ang helper, pero wala man pud siyay alamag ani," he said.
"Last week pa unta namo ni adtuon pero after pag approve the search warrant wala na didto ang duha ka Koreano, so ginahulat pa to namo nga mag balik pero wala man jud so amo na lang gi-adto jud kay good for 10 days lang man ang bisa sa search warrant," he said.
He said they were able to talk with the Koreans after their helper called them by phone. They knew that the respondents were already in Korea.
"Ana pa ang Koreano gina-alagaan lang daw nila, pero imposible kay sa kadaghan ani murag gina negosyo jud ni," he said.
He said tuko, if sold, would allegedly cost more than P15 million since a tuko weighing 400 grams would cost P500,000 to P1 million.
"Base sa mga silingan, gina sulod lang ug kawayan para dili mahalata pag igawas nila, usahay isulod sa mineral water bottle nga walay sulod," he said.
Albao said they suspected that the house is only rented to keep the tuko.
"Wala'y mga gamit ang balay, wala'y mga bangko, walay lamesa, wala jud," he said adding that the tuko and the respondents stayed in the house for two months.
The tuko are placed inside a large black rubberized container and it is kept under a lavatory located outside the house.
"Around 20 to 30 jud ni sila kay dili pa namo kayo mabilang ka yang uban nailaloman na, naa pud mga ulod sa sulod silbing pagkaon sa mga tuko," he said.
Albao said the smallest tuko would weigh around 100 grams and the largest would weigh more than 400 grams.
NBI regional director Max Salvador said they are still waiting for the representatives from the office of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) for the proper turnover of the tuko.
"Naa mi memorandum of agreement with the DENR para ani," he said.
He said the suspects would probably sell the tuko abroad.
The agency will file cases against the two Korean nationals for alleged violation of the Wildlife Resources Conservation and Protection Act.
Salvador said the NBI has a specialized training on the wildlife act.
He said this is the first time the NBI seized tuko in the region.
He added that the NBI is training its eyes on violators who keep tuko for busines
