ILOILO City – Negros Occidental and Bacolod City are still the main sources of illegal drugs in Western Visayas, according to the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA).
“But we’re lucky that most of the drug pushers from Bacolod or Negros Occidental were arrested,” said Shey Tanaleon, PDEA-6 spokesperson.
The information given by the community helped a lot, she noted.
Drug groups continue using “new faces” that PDEA and the police were not familiar with to avoid detection, Tanaleon added.
“That’s why we are conducting a revalidation of drug-cleared barangays. We want to know if there are new drug pushers in them,” she stressed.
Recently, PDEA arrested an ex-convict in an anti-drug operation in Barangay Tagbak, Jaro district. He was 42-year-old Ramel Delgado of Barangay Alijis, Bacolod City – a “high-value” target.
Delgado was caught selling P22,000 worth of suspected shabu to a poseur-buyer.
Nine more sachets of the prohibited substance valued at P480,000 were recovered from the suspect.
According to PDEA agent Jeanette Reyes, the suspect was released from jail in Malay, Aklan in 2019 after a plea bargaining agreement.
He was imprisoned for the same offense.
“We have been tailing him for several days. He was operating not only in Iloilo but also in other provinces. He usually carries with him not less than 50 grams of shabu,” Reyes said.
Delgado is still detained in the custodial facility of the PDEA-6./PN
