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BY GLENDA SOLOGASTOA
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Thursday, January 26, 2017
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ILOILO City – The monetary reward to whoever could give information leading to the successful arrest of suspected drug lord Richard Prevendido of Barangay Bakhaw, Mandurriao district has risen to a million pesos.
The Provincial Peace and Order Council (PPOC) approved a P500 thousand reward yesterday for the capture of the elusive Prevendido two days after its counterpart in Iloilo City offered half a million pesos as bounty.
According to the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) Region 6, Prevendido is the drug lord it has been referring to as “Buang”.
It was the Iloilo police provincial director, Senior Superintendent Harold Tuzon, who sought the bounty for Prevendido’s arrest.
The half a million pesos will be taken from the peace and order or intelligence fund of the provincial government.
Prevendido may be from Iloilo City but his operation covers Iloilo province.
Tuzon clarified that only civilian informants are eligible to get the reward money from the provincial government. This was similar to the Iloilo City reward.
According to Senior Superintendent Remus Zacharias Canieso, city police director, the arresting uniform police personnel and police “assets” were not qualified for the bounty.
Canieso also said the award would be released regardless of which law enforcement agency the informant contacted.
Arresting Prevendido will be done by the book, stressed Tuzon.
“We will observe police operational procedures,” he said, “Pero kun magbato (but if there is resistance)….” Tuzon did not finish his sentence.
As early as December last year, Chief Superintendent Jose Gentiles, Region 6 police director, appealed for Prevendido to peacefully surrender.
“I’m advising him to surface peacefully so he won’t be harmed,” said Gentiles.
PDEA raided Prevendido’s house and those of his relatives in October last year. Though he was not around, shabu worth P1.3 million were recovered and the suspected drug lord and several relatives were subsequently charged with violating the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.
Early this month, the Regional Trial Court, Branch 21 issued an arrest warrant against Prevendido.
“He won’t be harmed if he surrenders voluntarily,” said Superintendent Gilbert Gorero, spokesperson of the regional police office.
IIPO’s Tuzon said his men were making progress in the Prevendido manhunt but he declined to give details.
“Isa-isahin naming i-eliminate or i-clear ang areas,” said Tuzon.
Assistant regional director Levi Ortiz of PDEA admitted that Prevendido was hard to catch.
“He was constantly moving. We even received reports that he already left Western Visayas,” said Ortiz.
But he expressed confidence that the suspected drug lord would soon be caught.
“Pag hindi sya mag-surrender, baka madisgrasya pa,” Ortiz said. “He can run but he can’t forever hide. Makukuha rin sya. Matiyaga ang mga operatives natin.”/PN
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