AROUND P23.9 million worth of illegal drugs were seized in separate drug busts conducted in one day in Central Visayas.
Personnel of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency-Central Visayas (PDEA 7) and Philippine National Police launched an operation in Barangay Subangdaku, Mandaue City around 2:45 p.m. Sunday, May 19, leading to the arrest of Fatima Veraces, 28, of Barangay Mambaling, Cebu City.
Seized from Veraces were 1,500 grams of shabu worth P10.2 million, buy-bust money, a cellphone, and other pieces of evidence.
In a follow-up operation at 4:33 p.m. Sunday in Sitio Soong 2, Barangay Mactan, Lapu-Lapu City, the operatives arrested Veraces’ live-in partner, William Lopez Jr., 32, who yielded six packs of shabu weighing around 500 grams and worth P3.4 million.
Also seized from Lopez were the buy-bust money, a gray multicab, and other pieces of evidence.
The seized illegal substance was turnover to the PDEA for chemical analysis.
Leia Alcantara, information officer of PDEA 7, said that Veraces and Lopez were tagged as supplier of illegal drugs, according to a statement given to police by one of the arrested drug personalities.
Veraces and Lopez allegedly supply the illegal substance to drug players in Metro Cebu and Cebu province, who picked the drugs from them.
Alcantara said the two suspects were considered big drug players in Central Visayas due to the number of shabu that were confiscated from their possession.
She said they are currently investigating whether Veraces and Lopez were members of a drug group.
"Na identify to sila through a confidential informant then naa tay arrested this year, sila pud ang source. Source ni sila sa Metro Cebu ang Cebu province," said Alcantara.
In another operation on Sunday, a high value individual who was also a former inmate was nabbed by personnel of the Regional Police Drug Enforcement Unit 7 and Regional Intelligence Division 7 in a drug bust launched at 10:05 p.m. in Quijano Compound, Barangay Calamba, Cebu City.
The suspect was identified as Romelito “Mitong” Ygoña Flores, 48, a resident of Barangay Calamba. Seized from him were 1,525 grams of shabu worth P10.3 million.
Police investigation revealed that Flores got his supply of illegal drugs from a certain “AR.”
Flores’ area of distribution is the entire Metro Cebu and he can dispose of 3,000 grams of the illegal drugs every week, said the police. (AYB/LMY)
