BACOLOD City – From April 20 to 23, authorities arrested at least 13 beneficiaries of the government’s financial assistance here and in Negros Occidental for engaging in illegal drugs and illegal gambling.
On Wednesday night, officers of Police Station 10 caught Rene Dequeña, 42, at a quarantine checkpoint in Zone 12 of Barangay Handumanan.
The suspect, who was driving a motorcycle with a home quarantine pass from Barangay 16, yielded a .357-caliber revolver loaded with four live ammunition, a small plastic sachet containing suspected shabu, two pieces of improvised tooter, a wallet containing P1,999, among other items.
Bacolod City Police Office spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Ariel Pico, said Dequeña is a beneficiary of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program or 4Ps.
In Victorias City, three men were caught playing the card game tong-its in Crossing Mallorca, Barangay 19.
The suspects were identified as Mario Glenn Dimataga, 51; Jose Ruben Panggo, 50; and Fritz Hubierna, 43.
According to the police, two of the suspects are 4Ps beneficiaries while the other is a recipient of the social amelioration grant for those affected by the enhanced community quarantine due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
Operatives seized from the suspects a set of playing cards, a table mat, three plastic chairs, and P3,560 bet money.
They told the police they were playing tong-its to overcome their boredom while under ECQ.
Every month, 4Ps beneficiaries receive cash assistance from the government and were also given social amelioration grant during the quarantine period.
On Monday and Tuesday, nine residents of Victorias City, who also received cash assistance from the government, were arrested for engaging in illegal drugs and illegal gambling. (With a report from PNA/PN)
