TWO suspected members of a notorious drug syndicate operating in Regions 1 and 2 and the Cordillera were arrested in a police chokepoint in Sudipen, La Union, a police official said.
Senior Superintendent Marvin Bolabola, chief of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) regional office, identified the suspects as Randy Oriente Ordinario and Ariel Taer Oballes.
The suspects were riding in tandem in a motorcycle without plate number along Maharlika Highway in Sudipen when they were flagged down by combined CIDG and La Union policemen.
Accordingly, confiscated from the suspects were high-grade marijuana leaves packed in bricks.
The body search on the suspect, said Bolabola, also yielded two magazine clips for caliber .45 pistol, five live ammunition for same caliber, two cellular phones and a police sweatshirt.
A Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) identification card was also seized from Ordinario, who claimed that the ID was issued by a former PDEA regional director.
"Verification made by the CIDG to PDEA revealed that the suspect is not a registered agent of their office," Bolabola said.
Bolabola said the arrest of the suspects was a result of a month-long supply reduction. He said the two were placed under intensive surveillance after a previous test-buy sting operation conducted by CIDG policemen turned positive of high-grade export quality marijuana substance. (LCMY/Sunnex)
