POLICE officers who were trying to arrest a man allegedly involved in illegal drugs in Barangay Bulua Tuesday evening got wounded after the suspect's grenade exploded before he could lob it to the arresting officers.
Jamael “Palito” Macarampat lost his left arms and died Tuesday evening after a grenade exploded in his hand. The police officers were arresting him for a violation of Republic Act 9165 or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.
Just when law enforcers arrived at Macarampat's home at Zone 8 in Barangay Bulua around 7 p.m. to serve him the warrant of his arrest, the suspect pulled his .45 caliber pistol that resulted to a firefight, Bulua police chief Senior Inspector Ritchie Salva told this paper Wednesday morning.
The Scene of the Crimes Operatives (Soco) found injuries on Macarampat's neck, chest and lower portions of his abdomen and a gunshot wound on his right thigh.
Shrapnel from the grenade explosion also resulted in minor injuries to Chief Inspector Alfredo Ortiz Jr., Inspector Ramsey Cartagena and PO3 Anecito Bentuza.
Ortiz is the new chief of the City Anti-Illegal Drug Task Force (CAIDTF) while Cartagena and Bentuzal report to the City Public Safety Company (CPSC).
Senior Superintendent Graciano Mijares said the police were immediately discharged from the hospital after their treatment.
Mijares also expressed his relief that the firefight and the explosion did not result to vast damages.
Recovered from the crime scene were the suspect's .45 caliber pistol, another hand grenade, one magazine with live ammunition and three fired shells.
Buy-bust
Meanwhile, five drug personalities were arrested around 5 p.m. Tuesday at Agora market in Barangay Lapasan through an entrapment operation conducted by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency-Northern Mindanao's (PDEA-10) Misamis Oriental Provincial Special Enforcement Team.
Around 10 grams of suspected methamphetamine hydrochloride (shabu) with an estimated street value of P70,000 were confiscated from the suspects.
Emerson Margate, PDEA-10 regional director, identified the target as Dagatoon "Bandex" Imam, 35, of Barangay Bayang in Marawi City, Lanao del Sur.
Margate said when the undercover PDEA agent got the small piece sachet suspected to contain shabu, the team swooped on Imam and arrested him.
Three other sachets of different sizes containing suspected shabu were also intercepted from the suspect.
Imam and the four other suspects were detained at the PDEA-10 mini cell while cases for violations against RA 9165 have been prepared against them.