Tuesday, October 03, 2006 SK chairman arrested in drugs operation
THE Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) chairman in Barangay Ermita, Cebu City was arrested for allegedly selling shabu in an operation by the Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Bureau (CIIB) last Sunday night.
Carlo Magno E. Tude, 21, was caught at 6:30 p.m. inside a family-owned sari-sari store in Ermita.
The storekeeper, a 14-year-old girl, was also arrested.
Tude, in an interview inside the CIIB stockade, denied the allegation while the storekeeper declined to answer questions from the media.
PO2 Joel Cunan, who served as the poseur-buyer together with a female civilian asset, said in an affidavit that they went to the store and told the girl they wanted to buy “tangbuts” or shabu.
Cunan said the storekeeper received two P100 bills marked bills, which she gave to Tude.
Cunan said Tude took the money and placed it inside a transparent glass case.
The girl then took one small pack of suspected shabu from a transparent glass case and handed it to the civilian asset. The asset then gave the item to Cunan.
Upon Cunan’s signal, the backup team composed of SPO1 Felomino Mendaros, PO3 Leopoldo Bauzon, PO2s Edward Abatayo and Melberth Dio and PO1 Frederick Ybañez rushed to the area and arrested Tude and the storekeeper.
The operation also yielded eight more packs of shabu inside the glass case and P5,300 cash.
Mendaros told reporters yesterday that they also called the Crime Suppression Unit for back up after several residents started throwing bottles at them as they were pulling out from the area.
Mendaros said Tude and the storekeeper will be charged with selling shabu.
Tude will also face a separate administrative complaint before the Office of the Ombudsman for the Visayas.
Tude, when sought for comment, denied engaging in the illegal drug trade.
He said the allegations against him were all fabricated because some of the CIIB operatives are harboring a grudge against him.
He, however, declined to discuss further his remarks. (JST)
