Bacolod police seize PHP 120,700 worth of illegal diesel

BACOLOD CITY – A 56-year-old man was arrested for allegedly engaging in illegal petroleum trading during a buy-bust operation in Barangay Banago here on Tuesday, Nov. 3.

The operation stemmed from reports of alleged illegal siphoning, storage and trading of large volumes of petroleum products.

During the operation, a police poseur-buyer purchased a container of diesel fuel worth PHP 1,000 from the suspect, identified only as “Panoy,” using marked money.

The operation resulted in the seizure of 1,420 liters of suspected diesel fuel with an estimated market value of PHP 120,700, based on the prevailing price of PHP 85 per liter.

Other seized items included five 200-liter drums and 14 30-liter containers containing suspected diesel fuel, 13 empty buckets, approximately 150 empty containers, four manual rotary pumps with discharge hoses, three panel vans and one L300 vehicle allegedly used for the storage and transport of petroleum products.

Initial findings indicated that the petroleum-related activities were being conducted without the required Certificate of Compliance from the Department of Energy (DOE) and fire safety clearance from the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP), according to a report from the Police Regional Office-Negros Island Region (PRO-NIR).

Under DOE regulations, businesses engaged in retailing liquid petroleum products must secure a Certificate of Compliance before operating to ensure compliance with safety and regulatory requirements.

The suspect faces charges for violating Batas Pambansa Blg. 33, as amended, which penalizes certain prohibited acts involving petroleum products.

The suspect is detained at Police Station 3 pending the filing of appropriate charges, while the seized petroleum products have been secured under appropriate fire safety measures pending coordination with and turnover to the concerned regulatory agencies.

The PRO-NIR encouraged the public to report suspicious activities to the nearest police station.