Seven nabbed in P489-K ‘shabu’ bust

By Glazyl Y. Masculino

BACOLOD City – Police arrested seven persons and seized P489,000 worth of suspected shabu in three buy-bust operations here and in Negros Occidental on Thursday and Friday.

The latest drug haul was reported in Barangay 10 yesterday which resulted in the apprehension of a 19-year-old girl and her alleged cohort, Anthony Eppie, 43, of Barangay 12.

Both suspects allegedly yielded 50 grams of suspected shabu worth P340,000, the P500 marked money, lighter, and P981, according to Police Captain Paul Vincent Pendon, head of Police Station 2.

Pendon said the teenager, who is from Barangay Handumanan, is a high value individual (HVI), while Eppie is a street level individual (SLI).

Police conducted the operation after receiving information about their alleged engagement in illegal drugs.

Pendon said they will check if these suspects have links with the two men who were also arrested in Barangay 10, with 400 grams of suspected shabu worth P2.7 million on Wednesday, May 31.

He said they will also check if they have previous cases.

On Thursday, June 1, a 28-year-old man was also arrested in Barangay Banago here following the seizure of seven grams of suspected shabu worth P47,000.

This operation happened hours after the City Drug Enforcement Unit (CDEU) confiscated P1.7 million worth of suspected shabu from a young man in the said village.

Meanwhile, in Binalbagan town, four persons were arrested after police seized from them 15 grams of suspected shabu worth P102,000 at a rented house in Barangay Enclaro last Thursday.

Police Major Randy Babor, town police chief, identified the subject as Jepe Balbon.

Babor said that Balbon is an alleged street level individual as he is not included in the police station’s drugs watchlist.

“Ga on and off man abi presence niya sa lugar,” he added.

Babor said they have been receiving complaints about some people going in and out of Balbon’s house late in the evening or before dawn.

Babor said that Balbon managed to escape a drug bust in the previous years.

The three other suspects were alleged clients of Balbon caught inside the latter’s rented house.

Also recovered from them were the P500 marked money and a digital weighing scale.