Manila court orders arrest of Bren Esports head Bernard Lu Chong for involvement in drug smuggling case worth $33.6 million

A Manila court has ordered the arrest of Bernard "Bren" Chong, the businessman behind Bren Esports, due to his suspected involvement in the failed smuggling of the drug sh*bu at the Manila International Container Port. The confiscated drug amounted to P1.87 billion or $33.6 million.

According to the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) Chief of the International Operations Division Joey Moran, a nationwide manhunt for Chong is underway:

"Lu Chong is facing charges for alleged violation of Section 4, Article 2 of Republic Act 9165 or importation of illegal drugs, which is a non-bailable offense."

According to local news outlet Bilyonaryo, Lu Chong is being implicated in a botched smuggling case of narcotic product sh*bu, which in essence are methamphetamine pills. Authorities stopped the attempted smuggling back in 2019 and the order for Chong's arrest was approved in June 2021, but after a failed appeal, the order was enacted in April 2022.

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Bren Esports head put on the wanted list for failed drug smuggling attempt from three years ago

Philippines-based Bren Esports is a popular professional esports organization in Southeast Asia. They play in various competitive scenes, including games such as CS:GO, PUBG, League of Legends, Overwatch, Hearthstone and Clash Royale. They also have teams in Mobile Legends and Valorant, with various VCT titles under their belt.

Bernard "Bren" Chong started the organization on August 16, 2017. Due to his suspected connections to Fortuneyield Cargo Services Corporation, the designated consignee of the illegal narcotics consignment, he was implicated in the smuggling attempt.

NBI head Joey Moran declared in a press release that a manhunt for the suspect is ongoing and appealed to Chong to surrender to the police so that he may mount his defense in court:

“Drug smuggling is a very serious case and is an unbailable offense... As long as you have a warrant of arrest, you become a subject of a manhunt. However, Mr. Lu Chong can spare everyone the trouble if he surrenders and face the charges against him."

The Philippine Coast Guard and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency caught the smuggling attempt on May 31, 2019 at Manila International Container Port. They allegedly found 276.3 KG or 609 pounds of sh*bu which were concealed in plastic resins to avoid detection.

Sh*bu is a popular street drug in South East Asia, commonly consumed in pill form. It is a mixture of methamphetamine and caffeine and goes by many names such as "bikers' coffee" and "kamikaze."

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Twitter reaction to incident

Esports fans have reacted to the news with shock and disbelief. Many have already made memes of the Bren Esports founder, comparing him to Walter White from the hit drama series Breaking Bad:

Chong comes from a family of well-established businessmen in the Philippines and his brother has already disavowed any connection to him after news of the arrest warrant broke out. Bren Esports is yet to comment on the incident.