Rodrigo Duterte photographed with suspected Chinese ‘drug lords’, says former narcotics official

A former anti-narcotics official who wrote a report on two suspected Chinese “drug lords” said he sent the document to officials, but was unaware if any government action had been taken

One of the men had allegedly set up a meth lab in Davao, where Duterte previously served as a long-time mayor before taking office

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Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte. Photo: EPA

Published: 8:33pm, 25 Mar 2019Updated: 8:56am, 19 Dec 2019

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, who has faced widespread criticism over his deadly drug crackdown, has been photographed with two Chinese men suspected to be “deeply involved” in illegal drugs, said a former senior anti-narcotics official who wrote a report on the men in 2017 and sent a copy to the authorities.

Eduardo Acierto on Sunday said he was unaware what government action had been taken after he submitted his report about the two Chinese men to top police officials in December 2017.

Instead, Acierto said he was now facing illegal drugs complaints and has been the target of death threats that forced him to go into hiding recently.

“In my investigation, I discovered that our president ... is often accompanied by two people deeply involved in illegal drugs,” Acierto said in a video message shown to reporters before he appeared at a news conference in Manila.

“What popped into my mind at the time was maybe the president isn’t aware that these are suspected drug lords,” said Acierto, who was a veteran anti-narcotics official before he was dismissed last year by an anti-corruption agency.

Acierto’s allegation comes after Duterte on March 15 publicly named 46 government officials, including three congressmen, he said are involved in illegal drugs, and added that criminal investigations against them are underway.

Acierto’s confidential report contained many details about the alleged drug links of the two Chinese men, including a secret methamphetamine lab set up by one of the men that was raided in 2004 in Davao, where Duterte served as a long-time mayor before taking office in mid-2016.