ALMA CONFESSES, ADMITS OWNING SHABU
Manila,
July 31, 1998 - The Manila Standard says Alma Concepcion has admitted
that the white powdery substance found in her possession by Guam airport
customs authorities was indeed the prohibited drug "shabu" and
that it belonged to her.
Manila newspapers this morning published detailed reports written by their Guam-based reporters on how Alma got caught with what is alleged to be "shabu" or "ice" which is known to US police as Methamphetamine Hydrochloride.
When initially asked by Agana International Airport customs officers if she had anything to declare, Alma replied that she had "nothing to declare" but appeared tense, said a customs police officer.
Police sources told reporters that Alma had snatched back from a customs inspector a watch case, saying it was containing her dirty tampons.
She "appeared to be nervous when told to proceed to the secondary inspection counter" according to the police.
When opened, the watch case yielded assorted drug paraphernalia, including a needle which appeared burnt on one end and two straws with traces of a crystalline substance suspected to be "shabu" or "ice."
This morning, in a phone interview with ABS-CBN, Philippine Consul to Guam Antonio Villamor said Alma appeared to be in high spirits when he last visited the actress in jail.
"Miss Concepcion is refusing to give any interview, and we at the consulate are seeing to it that all her rights are protected. That is our job and our obligation to every citizen of the Republic of the Philippines," Villamor said.
Alma will remain injail pending posting of a reported $50,000 bail.