Man escapes, leaves wife to face charges in P1.7-M ‘shabu’ bust

By Glazyl Y. Masculino

 

BACOLOD City – Around 250 grams of suspected shabu worth P1.7 million was seized in a buy-bust at Purok Bagong Silang, Barangay Estefania here early Monday.

The City Drug Enforcement Unit (CDEU) said the targets of the operation were Edwin Vivero, 34; and his wife Christine Vivero, 35, who were both identified by police as “high value individuals.”

But Police Major Jun Ray Batadlan, head of Police Station 4, said that Edwin, the subject of the drug bust, was able to escape when he noticed the presence of police operatives in the area.

“Indi abi mayo mahalata ang asawa niya na ga-engage man,” Batadlan said.

Batadlan said the couple was included in the drugs watchlist of the police station.

Police confiscated during the operation 59 sachets of suspected shabu, the P1,000 marked money, a weighing scale, and a sling bag.

Batadlan said the couple probably just received the contraband and was supposed to distribute it to various areas here when they were busted.

But the wife did not reveal the source of the illegal drugs.

He said the suspects will be charged for violation of Sections 5 (sale of dangerous drugs) and 11 (illegal possession of dangerous drugs) of Republic Act 9165 or Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002. The arrested suspect is detained at Police Station 4.

The operation came two days after the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) seized an estimated P2.6 million worth of suspected shabu from a 19-year-old boy in a drug bust at Barangay 2 here on Saturday.