Suspected drug dealers nabbed

LOCAL police scored against the publicly perceived crime wave in Cagayan de Oro City on Tuesday after personnel from the Police Station 4 nabbed a group believed to be responsible for the series of robberies in Sitio Macanhan, Barangay Carmen.

Arrested were Roy Suson alias “Ponkly,” 24, alleged leader of the group; his brother Ronnie; 22; John Ordista, 18, all residents of Hilltop, Macanhan, Barangay Carmen, Hornelio Pelinio, 20, of Flores Compound along Gaston Park, and a 17-year-old (name withheld), a resident of J.R. Borja Compound, this city.

Senior Police Officer 2 Fernando Laspoña, of Police Station 4, said Roy Suson is an ex-convict and member of notorious Batang Mindanao (BM) 29 gang.

“Bag-o lang na siya nakagawas gikan sa (He just got out of) Davao Penal Colony. Daghan na siya og kaso apil na ang (He is known to have been involved in many criminal activities including) robbery,” Laspoña told Sun.Star Cagayan de Oro on Wednesday.

Police confiscated an improvised shotgun revolver type with four shotgun ammunitions from Suson, and five sachets suspected to be shabu (hydrochloride methamphetamine) from his companions.

Police authorities conducted the buy-bust operation around 4:30 p.m. at Phase 3, Macanhan, Carmen.

Police Senior Inspector Aflredo Ortiz, station commander of Police Station 4, said they have been monitoring Suson and his group for a long time now and have been subject to several operations of Police Station 4.

“Dugay nakuha tungod sa kaidlas pero sa katapusan nadakpan ra gihapon (He have been hunting this criminal for quite some time now but he is clever but in the end, we caught him),” he said in an interview over at dxIF Bombo Radyo.

However, Suson denied the allegations, saying he does not sell illegal drugs but admitted he owned an improvised shotgun revolver.

“Giplanting ra na sa mga polis sa ako sir, wala ko namaligya og shabu, ug wala pud ko nanulis, akong atubangon kung naay complainant nga motudlo nga ako ang nanulis (The police just planted the shabu on me. I don’t sell drugs and I am not involved in any robbery. I am willing to face the complainant who supposedly ratted me out),” Ponkly said.

The five suspects are now temporarily detained at Cagayan de Oro City Police Office’s Maharlika Headquarters Detention Center pending the filing of charges for violation of Comelec gun ban, violation of Republic Act 9165, and robbery.