Self-confessed ‘drug lord’ caught in P1M drug sting

By Jennifer P. Rendon

A self-proclaimed former large-scale drug dealer was detained during a late-night anti-narcotics sting on March 21 in Molo, Iloilo City.

Estanislao Hinojales, 44, from Barangay San Juan, Molo, branded himself a drug lord for reportedly distributing approximately 2 to 3 kilograms of illegal drugs monthly over a decade ago.

However, Hinojales disputed that the significant quantity of shabu found in his possession during Thursday’s operation was his.

The Iloilo City Police Office-City Drug Enforcement Unit (ICPO-CDEU), in collaboration with the Iloilo City Police Station 4 and the Maritime Police Station-Iloilo, arrested the suspect after he sold a sachet of suspected shabu for P14,000.

A search of Hinojales resulted in the discovery of 10 additional sachets of suspected shabu.

Lieutenant Colonel Antonio Benitez, Jr., chief of CDEU, reported that the confiscated drugs weighed around 150 grams and were valued at a standard price of P1,020,000.

Hinojales acknowledged a previous arrest in 2012, when he allegedly trafficked shabu by the kilos, claiming that he had already served his sentence for that offense.

He was again apprehended during a buy-bust operation on June 13, 2023, at Barangay San Juan, Molo, along with five others, where police confiscated P476,000 worth of drugs. Currently, he is out on bail for that case.

Benitez revealed that Hinojales had been obtaining his drug supply directly from Luzon.

Now in custody, Hinojales faces charges for violation of Republic Act 9166 (Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002).