P578,000 worth of ‘shabu’, gun seized, 3 nabbed

By Glazyl Y. Masculino

 

BACOLOD City – Three persons were arrested after P578,000 worth of suspected shabu and gun and ammunition were recovered from them in a buy-bust inside a boarding house at Purok Paglaum, Barangay 17 here Thursday.

Police identified the suspects as Zerlin Magbanua, 40, of Talisay City, Negros Occidental, an alleged high-value drug peddler; and his two alleged runners – Jimbo Meniao, 23, and Rene Yanson, 43, both residents of Barangay Villamonte here.

Authorities seized from them 20 sachets of suspected shabu weighing 85 grams, P25,000 marked money, drug paraphernalia, and P2,500 cash.

Police also recovered from Magbanua a homemade .22 caliber revolver and 10 live ammunition.

Police Major Sherlock Gabana, head of Police Station 2, said that the suspects allegedly repacked the drugs at Magbanua’s boarding house.

Meniao and Yanson purportedly distributed the items in various areas in the city, Gabana said.

He said that the three suspects may be part of a drug group here. But they refused to give information to the police about other members of the group or their source.

All three suspects are detained at the police station for filing of criminal charges.