A Canadian fugitive is facing life in prison for allegedly smuggling crystal meth worth almost a quarter of a million dollars into the Philippines.

Thomas Gordon O'Quinn, 38 who also goes by James Toby Martin, was nabbed at a spa in Tagaytay City, 44 miles from the capital Manila, on May 16.

Bureau of Immigration officials made the arrest after Thomas was flagged by Interpol for previous suspected crimes. They then allegedly uncovered his involvement in a massive 1.4-tonne meth drug haul worth an estimated 10 billion PHP (171,500 USD / 236,000 CAD) in Alitagtag town in the country's Batangas province.

Cops in the hardline Catholic country - which allowed drug users to be shot on sight under previous leader President Rodrigo Duterte - seized from Thomas loose cash, four bank cards, seven mobile phones, 14 sim cards, and several IDs bearing different aliases.

Speaking at a press conference on May 20, Interior and Local Government Secretary Benhur Abalos Jr. said the Canadian is the subject of an Interpol red notice for 'conspiracy to possess, export, and distribute illegal substances' into the United States.

He said: 'The suspect was caught under the red notice of Interpol and when he was caught, his involvement in Alitagtag was also investigated. It's under investigation right now, but so far, all I can tell you is that this person played a big part in the smuggling.

'There is a lot of evidence linking him to the Alitagtag case, but we will not release it for now. I hope you understand because he's not the only one involved. We are still chasing other suspects, but it turns out that his role in this is really big.'

The Department of Justice said it has recommended filing charges against Thomas. It said in a statement on May 22: 'Finding that the evidence of the complainant sufficient and that respondent was validly arrested, criminal information for two counts of violation of Section 11 (possession of dangerous drugs) of RA (Republic Act) No. 9165 and for the crime of use of fictitious names will be filed against respondent in the appropriate courts.'

Thomas was detained and taken to the National Capital Regional Police Office in Metro Manila.

Police said they were investigating if he was part of a larger drug syndicate. He is now being grilled in the hopes that he will turn King's counsel and cough up evidence against other players in exchange for a lighter sentence.

Under the country's Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002, mere possession of a 'dangerous drug', including 10 grams or more of meth, may be punished by a sentence of up to life imprisonment and a fine ranging from 500,000 PHP to 10 million PHP.

The same punishment is applicable for those who 'import or bring into the Philippines any dangerous drug, regardless of the quantity and purity involved'.