Pontevedra drug bust nets P340,000 in ‘shabu’

By Glazyl Y. Masculino

BACOLOD CITY – Police apprehended last Thursday an alleged drug group member in a buy-bust operation at Crossing Tuguis, Barangay Buenavista Gibong, Pontevedra, Negros Occidental.

The individual, identified as Jolo Española, 40, from Hinigaran town, is considered a street-level drug dealer.

The suspect, Española, was found with 50 grams of what is suspected to be shabu, valued at P340,000, said Major Romulo Gepilango, the town police chief.

He revealed that weeks were spent verifying the claims of Española’s illicit dealings.

According to Gepilango, the illegal narcotics were believed to have been sourced from Bacolod.

During the operation, officers also recovered P500 in marked money from Española.

In a related incident the same evening, Gepilango disclosed that another suspect who is linked to the same drug network was detained in Barangay Paticui, Hinigaran town.

Police seized four grams of suspected shabu with an estimated street value of P27,200 from the suspect.