LEGAZPI CITY -- More than P22 million worth of illegal drugs were seized and 125 drug suspects arrested in anti-illegal drugs operations in August, the Police Regional Office in Bicol reported Thursday.
PRO-5 director BGen. Nestor Babagay Jr. said 3,358.337 grams of shabu and 61.1 grams of marijuana were seized inside 155 operations conducted across the region.
The operations also resulted in the arrest of 125 drug violators, five of whom were identified as high-value individuals (HVIs), while 120 were street-level pushers and users.
Among the provinces, Camarines Norte registered the highest value of confiscated drugs amounting to P16.1 million, followed by Camarines Sur with P4.8 million, Naga City with P675,694, Catanduanes with P554,200, Albay with P291,924, Masbate, P263,840; and Sorsogon, P48,620.
Man with 'shabu' wounded in Maguindanao ambush
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A man allegedly carrying shabu and a pistol was shot and critically injured in an ambush along the national highway in Maguindanao del Sur on Thursday morning, Sept. 4.
The victim, identified as Aldren Arendain Almento, 41, of General Santos City, is now undergoing treatment at a hospital in Cotabato City.
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According to LtCol. Jopy Ventura, spokesman for the police in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), Almento was driving a Toyota Innova when unidentified gunmen ambushed him past 9 a.m. along the national highway in Barangay Tulunan, Datu Anggal Midtimbang town.
Ventura said the motive for the attack and the identities of the attackers are still being determined.
Responding police officers from nearby Talayan, also in Maguindanao del Sur, rushed the victim to a hospital in Cotabato City.
Ventura said the police found suspected shabu, a pistol, ammunition and the victim's personal belongings inside the vehicle.
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Bulacan sting nets HVI target, P1.3-M shabu seized
In Bulacan, intensified anti-illegal drug operations of the Bulacan police led to the arrest of an HVI in Barangay San Marcos, Calumpit town on Wednesday night, Sept. 3.
In a statement on Thursday morning, Bulacan provincial director Col. Angel Garcillano identified the suspect as "Alias Sacho," 63, a tricycle driver and resident of Barangay San Marcos. The suspect was arrested by the Station Drug Enforcement Unit (SDEU) of the Calumpit Municipal Police Station during a buy-bust operation at around 10:45 p.m.
Recovered from the suspect were 200 grams of shabu with a street value of P1.36 million, a black sling bag, a weighing scale, assorted drug paraphernalia, empty sachets and the marked boodle money used in the operation.
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Garcillano assured that standard procedures were strictly followed during the inventory of the seized evidence, with witnesses from the barangay, media and Department of Justice present.
Police Regional Office 3 chief BGen. Ponce Rogelio Peñones Jr. said the accomplishment is a direct manifestation of the command's adherence to the 7-Point Agenda of acting PNP chief LtGen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. "The capture of a high-value target such as 'Alias Sacho' demonstrates our firm resolve to sustain the anti-illegal drug campaign in line with the directives of our acting chief PNP," said Peñones.
"This accomplishment affirms our commitment to safeguard communities, dismantle drug operations, and uphold the rule of law," added Peñones.