Iloilo City twin drug stings net P1.2M worth of ‘shabu’

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By Jennifer P. Rendon

Five individuals were apprehended during two distinct police anti-drug operations on March 26 in Iloilo City.

The suspects were found in possession of shabu worth an estimated standard drug price of P1.2 million, translating to a street value exceeding P3 million.

Melvin Domdom, 31; Anthony Robles, 43; and Eugen Robles were taken into custody at approximately 4:15 p.m. on Tuesday at Zone 13, Barangay Calaparan, Arevalo, Iloilo City.

The trio, all engaged in the lechon business and residents of the area, were caught by members of the Iloilo City Police Office – City Drug Enforcement Unit (ICPO-CDEU), with support from Iloilo City Police Station 6 and the Maritime Police Station – Iloilo.

The arrest followed their sale of a sachet of suspected shabu for P8,000. The group was also found with an additional 11 sachets and a knot-tied plastic pack containing suspected shabu, along with various non-drug-related items.

Lieutenant Colonel Antonio Benitez, Jr., head of CDEU, reported that the drugs seized from these suspects weighed about 120 grams, with a standard drug price of P816,000 and a street value of P2.4 million.

In a concurrent operation, brothers Robert Martinez, 43, and Rene Jun Martinez, 37, were detained at Zone 1, Brgy. Tanza Esperanza, City Proper, where they are residents.

Officers from the Iloilo City Police Station 1 and PDEA agents arrested the brothers for vending a sachet of suspected shabu valued at P12,100. In their possession, 14 additional sachets of suspected shabu were found.

Captain Roque Gimeno III, the chief of ICPS1, disclosed that the confiscated shabu totaled around 62 grams, with a standard drug price of P421,600.

Gimeno also noted that both individuals are listed as illegal drug personalities by the Barangay Anti-Drug Abuse Council (BADAC). Robert had previously been arrested for a drug-related offense in February 2023 but was released in January 2024.

The suspects are currently in custody and face charges under Republic Act 9165, the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.