Ex-village chief arrested in PHP 5.2 million drug bust
A former barangay captain was arrested in a high-stakes police anti-drug operation in Iloilo province early on Dec. 8. The suspect, identified only as alias “Paolo,” 40, is a former chairperson of Barangay Poblacion Market in Sara, Iloilo. He was arrested during a buy-bust operation conducted at around 12:50 a.m. at

By Jennifer P. Rendon

By Jennifer P. Rendon
A former barangay captain was arrested in a high-stakes police anti-drug operation in Iloilo province early on Dec. 8.
The suspect, identified only as alias “Paolo,” 40, is a former chairperson of Barangay Poblacion Market in Sara, Iloilo.
He was arrested during a buy-bust operation conducted at around 12:50 a.m. at People’s Village in Barangay Calapdan, Estancia.
The operation was carried out by Team 3 of the Iloilo Police Provincial Office–Provincial Drug Enforcement Unit (IPPO-PDEU), in coordination with the Sara and Estancia municipal police, the IPPO Provincial Intelligence Unit, and the 2nd Iloilo Mobile Force Company.
Maj. Dadje Delima, chief of the IPPO-PDEU, said the team seized an estimated 770 grams of suspected shabu with a street value of PHP 5,236,000.
He said the suspect had been on the region’s drug watchlist and was placed under surveillance for four months prior to the operation.
“He was dormant. He was also slippery. We needed an asset that has a direct connection with him,” Delima said.
Police said Paolo had no previous drug-related arrest.
He was known to stay with friends and cohorts in Estancia while engaging in illegal drug transactions.
Delima added that Paolo sourced his supply from the same group linked to alias “Cheche,” dubbed the “drug queen of the North.”
Cheche, along with her brother and live-in partner, was arrested on Nov. 15 in Sara.
The trio yielded around 1.8 kilograms of suspected shabu worth PHP 12,240,000.
Paolo reportedly stepped away from politics after his term ended, with his mother succeeding him in office.
Police are now investigating his possible protectors and associates.
He is currently detained and will face charges for violating Republic Act No. 9165, or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.
Article Information
Comments (0)
LEAVE A REPLY
No comments yet
Be the first to share your thoughts!
Related Articles

Asian newsrooms warn Big Tech is choking press freedom
Thirteen independent news organizations across Southeast Asia have issued a joint manifesto on World Press Freedom Day, warning that Big Tech platforms, parasitic artificial intelligence scrapers, and a flood of online disinformation are pushing public interest journalism toward collapse. Daily Guardian is among the signatories of the manifesto titled “Let’s


