THE son of the village chief of Manipis, Talisay City escaped during a buy-bust conducted by local police at his house last Saturday afternoon.
The operation against Juniel Cabiluna, 32, was conducted by local police led by Insp. Inar Vic Florece in Sitio YMCA at 3 p.m. last Saturday.
Cabiluna is the son of Barangay Manipis chief Emma Cabiluna.
Although Cabiluna escaped, police recovered two small packs of suspected shabu inside his house.
Two of Cabiluna’s companions, Robin Alfornon and Jupiter Silva, were also arrested by police for possession of illegal drugs and weapons.
Police recovered three small packs of suspected shabu from Alfornon while a .357 pistol was recovered from Silva.
Supt. Marlu Conag, acting Talisay City police chief, said they have been monitoring Cabiluna’s movements for days after receiving reports that he frequently sells drugs to habal-habal drivers in the village.
While not a high-profile drug suspect, Conag said Cabiluna is a tough target for being the son of a village chief.
Barangay Captain Cabiluna, in a separate interview, admitted that her son has been using and selling illegal drugs since he was 27 years old.
She said her son has been living in Barangay Cantabaco in Toledo City with his live-in partner.
Cabiluna said she had tried to convince her son to stop his illegal activities but failed.
She, however, questioned the local police on how they were able to confirm that it was her son who was involved in the buybust.
Cabiluna believes that her political opponents are using the issue against her, considering that the May 2018 barangay polls is fast approaching. (JKV)