BY DOMINIQUE GABRIEL G. BAÑAGA
BACOLOD City – Suspected shabu valued at P34 million was seized by Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) operatives in Barangay Old Poblacion, Escalante City, Negros Occidental early morning on Friday.
It is now the largest confiscation of shabu in Western Visayas since the seizure of P20.4-million worth of shabu at the BREDCO Port in Bacolod City by joint operatives of PDEA, Philippine Coast Guard, and the Bacolod City Police Office in January this year.
PDEA also arrested a suspect yesterday – Vicente Sepuesca of Barangay Sum-ag, Bacolod City.
Sepuesca originated from Cebu province, according to PDEA-Negros Occidental operative
“Agent Bamboo”.
PDEA believed the shabu seized was either from Cebu or Metro Manila and intended for distribution in Bacolod City.
The shabu was found in five bags labeled as “Chinese tea” and had a combined weight of five kilograms.
Sepuesca was taken to the Escalante City police station. Charges for violation of the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2022 would be filed against him.
PDEA suspected Sepuesca could be working for a drug group operating in Negros Occidental.
In January, K-9 teams from the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) and PDEA were conducting a routine inspection of vehicles at roll-on/roll-off (roro) vessels at BREDCO Port when their drug-sniffing dogs detected something.
Upon checking a vehicle – a white Toyota Altis sedan – the operatives discovered three vacuum-sealed cellophane bags containing suspected shabu.
The bags had a combined weight of three kilos, said Police Captain Paul Vincent Pendon, Police Station 2 commander.
Two suspects were arrested – Aslanie Desomangcop Usman of Lopez Jaena Street, Barangay 31; and Mohammad Ambulo of Villa Angela Subdivision in Barangay Villamonte.
In a separate information provided by PCG-Negros Occidental, the suspects originated from Metro Manila and traveled via roll-on/roll-off vessel from Batangas to Caticlan (Malay, Aklan) then traveled by land to Dumangas, Iloilo.
At the seaport of Dumangas, the suspects boarded a Bacolod City-bound roro vessel.
Operatives believed the suspects were planning to either sell-off or distribute the suspected shabu to druggies in Negros Occidental./PN