• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
A series of buy bust operations during the weekend in Negros Occidental, including highly urbanized Bacolod City, yielded more than P870,000 worth of suspected shabu and the arrest of eight drug suspects, including a job order employee of the Silay City government.
The arrest of three drug suspects by operatives of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency on Sunday at Progreso Village 1 in Barangay Vista Alegre, Bacolod City, also led to the confiscation of an estimated 110 grams of suspected shabu with a market value of P748,000.
Another buy bust operation on June 29 at Hacienda Culahao in Brgy. E. Lopez, Silay City, Negros Occidental, led to the arrest of another job order worker of the Silay City government and his companion.
Their apprehensions also yielded about 14 grams of suspected shabu with a market value of P95,200.
The arrest of three other drug suspects in Escalante City, Binalbagan and La Carlota City on June 28 and 29, respectively, also led to the confiscation of six grams of suspected shabu with a market value of P40,800.
The apprehended drug suspects, whose identities were withheld by the authorities, are now locked up in jail, and are to be charged for violation of RA 9165, otherwise known as the Comprehensive Dangerous Drug Act of 2002.*