P7.3-M ‘shabu’ seized from van driver in Negros Oriental

By Glazyl Y. Masculino

BACOLOD CITY — The Negros Oriental Provincial Police Office (Norppo) has intercepted over a kilo of suspected shabu worth P7.3 million from a van driver in Bacong town, preventing the potential spread of illegal drugs ahead of next month’s Buglasan Festival in Dumaguete City.

The suspect, identified only as alias “Opaw,” 45, of Barangay Bagacay, Dumaguete City, was arrested during a buy-bust operation at Purok San Sebastian, Barangay Buntis, Bacong, on Tuesday.

Police Lt. Stephen Polinar, public information officer of Norppo, said the suspect had been under surveillance by the intelligence unit for several months.

“We are intensifying our anti-illegal drug operations in preparation for the event because we don’t want these contrabands to sneak into the province and be used for illegal activities,” Polinar said.

Authorities recovered 1,085 grams of suspected shabu, sealed in orange tea-like packaging, along with P13,000 in marked money from the suspect.

Polinar noted that the suspect, a van-for-hire driver, is considered a high-value individual due to the quantity of the drugs seized.

The suspect claimed an unidentified person would call him to pick up the drugs at various locations.

“He said he doesn’t know the supplier because the calls came from an unknown number,” Polinar added.

Polinar also disclosed that the suspect had previously picked up a similarly large quantity of illegal drugs, adding that they have leads on the source of the narcotics based on intelligence monitoring.

However, specific details were withheld pending further investigation.

Police are reviewing the suspect’s background to determine if he has prior offenses. Charges for the sale and possession of dangerous drugs were filed against the suspect yesterday.