Abantao group’s alleged minion falls in drug bust

By Jennifer P. Rendon

Another alleged underling of the Abantao drug group was arrested in a police anti-illegal drugs operation on July 4, 2021 in Molo, Iloilo City.

Kesyl John Gomez, 26, a resident of Zone III, Barangay San Juan, Molo was taken into police custody after he allegedly sold a sachet of suspected shabu worth P12,500 to a police poseur-buyer at Barangay East Timawa.

Members of the Regional Police Drug Enforcement Unit 6 (RPDEU-6), together with Iloilo City Police Station 4 and the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group 6 (CIDG-6), conducted the operation against Gomez after a two-week surveillance operation

Lieutenant Colonel Mark Anthony Darroca, RPDEU-6 chief, said Gomez is the No. 6 person of the regional priority target.

He’s considered a high-value individual (HVI) drug personality after aligning himself with the Abantao group.

After his arrest, Gomez yielded two more sachets of suspected shabu wrapped in a brown paper and sealed with a black electrical tape, a sling bag, P140 personal cash, the marked money, and three brown paper bags wrapped with electrical tape.

The seized drugs weighed 15 grams and valued at P102,000.

Darroca said the suspect has been posing as a pedicab driver.

“But he doesn’t need to. It’s just his modus. He has established himself financially after getting into illegal drugs since last year,” he said.

Darroca said Gomez has been kicked out of their family home after his family opposed his illegal activity.

“He went into driving a pedicab as a way to deliver his supply to clients,” he said.

But surely, someone does not need to drive a pedicab when they are given a regular of 200 grams of shabu for distribution, Darroca said.

Gomez told the police that he had been imprisoned for a robbery case.

Police noted that he and the Gevero family used to work for the Abantaos.

“They belong to the same distribution group,” he said.

But the Geveros were arrested September 2020 at Molo district.

Gerardo Gevero, 53; his wife Lucimar Gevero, 51; and their son Luger, 34, all residents of Barangay San Juan, Molo, were collared for allegedly selling illegal drugs.

All suspects are considered as high-value individual drug personalities.

Luger was the subject of the operation.

But aside from his parents, Luger’s wife, who was pregnant with their sixth child, may have been involved in their trade.

But charges against Luger’s wife were not pursued because of her pregnancy.

Police are now entertaining the idea that one of the Geveros and Gomez could be working for the Abantao group.

The group is led by Jovern Abantao. He and his two brothers are all detained at the New Bilibid Prison

Jovern was the same inmate who allegedly mobilized drug pushers who were caught with large volumes of illegal drugs in the city and province of Iloilo.