Couple arrested in P2.14-M drug bust

By Jennifer P. Rendon

A couple was apprehended in a sting operation by the Regional Police Drug Enforcement Unit (RPDEU) 6 at City Proper, Iloilo City in the early hours of March 2.

Romeo Jancinal, 38, from Barangay Gen. Hughes, City Proper, and his partner, Jackielou Espinosa, 48, of Barangay Concepcion, City Proper district, were caught during a buy-bust operation at around 4:15 a.m. on Muelle Loney St., Barangay dela Rama.

The RPDEU 6 team, led by Captain Glenn Soliman, seized 23 sachets of suspected shabu, alongside P1,000 in cash, two mobile phones, a belt bag, a gray pouch, and various other items from the couple after they sold a sachet of the suspected illegal substance for P16,000.

The confiscated drugs, weighing approximately 315 grams, have an estimated street value of P2,142,000.

Jancinal and Espinosa have been under surveillance for their involvement in the narcotics trade for the past two months, known for both distributing and sourcing their illegal supply within Iloilo City.

According to Captain Soliman, this isn’t the couple’s first brush with the law concerning drug offenses.

They had been arrested previously and were released a few years earlier after taking advantage of a plea bargaining agreement.

Now detained, Jancinal and Espinosa are set to face charges for violating the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002, Republic Act 9165, as the authorities continue their crackdown on the illegal drug trade in the region.