THE Regional Police Office in Western Visayas (PRO 6) arrested four high-value individuals (HVIs) and seized approximately 390 grams of shabu around P2,652,000 in separate buy-bust operations in Iloilo City on October 2 and 3, 2025.
Police Brigadier General Josefino Ligan, regional director of the Police Regional Office in Western Visayas (PRO 6), commended the operatives for their successful anti-drug operations.
“These back-to-back operations demonstrate our unwavering commitment to rid Western Visayas of illegal drugs. The arrest of these high-value targets is a clear warning to drug personalities that there is no safe place for them here. We will continue to strengthen our operations and partnerships with the community to ensure a safer and drug-free region,” Ligan said.
The first operation took place on October 2 at around 8:44 p.m. when the Regional Police Drug Enforcement Unit (RPDEU) in Western Visayas arrested alias Keth, 27, single, and a resident of Barangay Rizal Pala-Pala Zone I, City Proper District, Iloilo City.
Police recovered from him 12 sachets and five knot-tied plastic bags of shabu weighing about 220 grams, buy-bust money, a cellular phone, two improvised glass tooters, P600 in alleged drug proceeds, and other non-drug items.
Hours later, on October 3 at about 12:50 a.m., RPDEU operatives launched another buy-bust operation in Barangay Calaparan, Arevalo District, Iloilo City. Arrested were three HVIs identified as alias Jer, 22, single; alias Alan, 20, single, student; and alias Kar, 18, single, student, all residents of the said barangay.
The suspects conspired to sell one sachet of shabu worth P12,000 to a poseur-buyer. Confiscated from them were one sachet as a buy-bust item, seven more sachets of shabu weighing about 170 grams, P12,000 buy-bust money, one android phone, and other non-drug items.
The two operations were conducted by the Regional Police Drug Enforcement Unit (RPDEU) in Western Visayas with support from Iloilo City Police Station (ICPS) 6, ICPS 7, Regional Intelligence Division in Western Visayas (RID 6), and the PNP Drug Enforcement Group Special Operations Unit in Western Visayas (PDEG-SOU 6). Authorities said the buy-busts followed a month-long intelligence monitoring and surveillance of the suspects’ activities.
The arrested suspects are under police custody and will be charged with violation of Sections 5 (Sale of Dangerous Drugs), 11 (Possession of Dangerous Drugs), and 26 (Conspiracy) of Republic Act (RA) 9165, also known as the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002. (Leo Solinap)