BY RHENJIE MARIE CALANTAS & RUBY P. SILUBRICO
ILOILO City – In the first half of 2023, the Police Regional Office 6 (PRO-6) arrested 2,591 individuals for illegal gambling.
From January to June, there were 814 police operations and a total confiscation of P595,290 in bet money.
Negros Occidental Provincial Police Office conducted the most number of operations at 356, which led to the arrest of 1,298 individuals and confiscation of P245,348 bet money.
The other police offices and their anti-illegal gambling accomplishments:
* Bacolod City Police Office – 409 arrests, 122 operations, P37,352 total confiscations
* Iloilo City Police Office – 231 arrests, 60 operations, P85,925 total confiscations
* Iloilo Police Provincial Office – 224 arrests, 87 operations, P61,371 total confiscations
* Antique Police Provincial Office – 183 arrests, 54 operations, P48,382 total confiscations
* Capiz Police Provincial Office – 107 arrests, 80 operations, P34,480 total confiscations
* Aklan Police Provincial Office – 92 arrests, 45 operations, P67,265 total confiscations
* Guimaras Provincial Police Office – 47 arrests; 10 operations; P15,166 total confiscations
PRO-6 director Brigadier Sidney Villaflor also said the one-strike policy remains in effect. If illegal gambling operations are discovered in an area by another police unit, the commander of that area will be immediately relieved of their posts.
“Our best weapon is the people in the community who constantly help the police in this campaign by giving the police valuable information,” said Villaflor./PN
