P10.2-M worth of ‘shabu’ seized from Region 7’s high value target

By: Glazyl Y. Masculino

BACOLOD City – The Negros Oriental Police Provincial Office (Norppo) seized P10.2 million worth of suspected shabu from a high value target (HVT) drug personality of Central Visayas in a buy-bust at Barangay Siapo, San Jose town Monday, October 28.

Arrested was Denaquiel Aran Ciano, 42, of the said village.

Police Major Wilfredo Alarcon Jr., head of the Provincial Intelligence Division (PID), said they raided Ciano’s house around 7:10 p.m. in coordination with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) and San Jose Municipal Police Station.

Alarcon said authorities stormed Ciano’s alleged “depot” of illegal drugs and recovered from his nipa hut 1.5 kilograms of suspected shabu, digital weighing scale, drug paraphernalia, and the P1,000 marked money.

Alarcon said they were able to track down Ciano after he was being pointed as the alleged supplier of some drug personalities arrested earlier this month.

“We were able to monitor him for two weeks during the Buglasan Festival in Dumaguete City,” he added.

Alarcon said Ciano is considered a regional level HVT because of his previous drug offense and the recent confiscation of big volume of drugs from him.

He said Ciano was arrested in Sibulan town in 2017 for the same offense and was released early this year after he availed plea bargaining.

He said Ciano would usually distribute the contraband in the province, but they are also checking if the items are also reaching Kabankalan City in Negros Occidental.

“His house is considered a place where illegal drugs are stored, but he would also sometimes sell the contraband to some of his clients,” Alarcon said.

He said Ciano’s house cannot be easily found because it was hidden seven kilometers away from the highway.

He said they are still verifying the information if the items was really sourced out from Mindanao and Cebu.

He said Ciano, who is detained at San Jose Municipal Police Station, will be charged for sale and illegal possession of dangerous drugs.