• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
A series of anti-drug operations of the police and Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency in Negros Island, conducted from April 7 to 10, yielded P41,852,000 worth of suspected shabu, seized from 11 arrested suspects.
The bulk of the recovered drug haul was by the police in Negros Oriental, who seized about four kilos of suspected shabu with a market value of P27.2 million, from a drug suspect, who was arrested on April 9, at Purok 6 in Barangay Maslog, Sibulan.
Identified only as alias Eljin, the arrested suspect is considered by the police as a high value individual in the illegal drug trade. He is a resident of Bais City, Negros Oriental.
On the same day, the police also seized about 75 grams of suspected shabu valued at P510,000, from a certain Tata, who apprehended during a buy bust operation at Purok Sigay in Brgy. 2, Bacolod City.
A joint operation of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency and local police also resulted in the arrest of alias Khent, 23, in Barangay Bantayanon, Calatrava, on April 7.
Operatives found in his possession two vacuum-sealed plastic packs containing two kilograms of shabu valued at P13.6 million.
Another anti-drug operation by the police on April 8 led to the arrest of three more drug suspects in Brgy. Tangub, Bacolod City, which led to the confiscation of about 65 grams of suspected shabu worth P442,000.
Seven more suspects were nabbed by the police in Manapla, the cities of Escalante, Sagay, Silay, Talisay, and La Carlota, Negros Occidental, on April 10, yielding an estimated P100,000 worth of suspected illegal drugs.
The police also recovered a homemade 12-gauge shotgun with two ammunition and a Colt caliber .45 pistol with a magazine containing six ammunition.*
