PHP 1 million shabu seized in Batad drug sting

By Jennifer P. Rendon

Two jobless men were arrested in an anti-illegal drug operation in Iloilo province early morning on October 30.

Police identified the suspects only by their aliases: Toto, 31, and Ram-Ram, 27, both residents of Barangay Bulak Sur, Batad, Iloilo.

Members of the Batad Municipal Police Station, along with the Iloilo Police Provincial Office–Provincial Drug Enforcement Unit (IPPO-PDEU), arrested the two in a roadside buy-bust operation in Barangay Caw-i, Batad.

The suspects allegedly sold a sachet of suspected shabu for PHP 8,600.

After the arrest, police seized three more sachets of suspected shabu.

Captain John Predic Padilla, Batad police chief, said the seized drugs weighed approximately 150 grams, with a standard drug price of PHP 1,020,000.

Padilla said Toto, considered a high-value individual, was the main target of the operation.

He had no prior drug-related arrest.

Police had attempted a buy-bust operation in July, but Toto did not show up at the designated meeting spot.

Meanwhile, Ram-Ram was reportedly arrested for a drug-related offense in San Dionisio town when he was still a minor.

Padilla said both suspects were not listed in the Barangay Anti-Drug Abuse Council’s (BADAC) roster of illegal drug personalities.

They had been under surveillance for about three months after other arrested drug suspects identified them as suppliers.

The duo allegedly distributed shabu in Batad and neighboring towns in Iloilo’s fifth district.

They are currently detained and will be charged with violating Republic Act No. 9165, or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.