BALER, Aurora–Seven suspected drug pushers, six of whom from neighboring Nueva Ecija, including two women, have been arrested by police in a raid on a suspected drug den in this capital town Friday, police said.
Police Inspector Ramos Prado, OIC-station commander, identified the Michael John Manalastas, 35, of Barangay Bucana; Ezer Fernando, 28, of Barangay Sto. Niño; Maria Lourdes Cabling, 26; Joseph Manalastas, 34 and Joseph Mercado, 30, all of Gapan City in Nueva Ecija; Ferdinand Ramos, 47 of Barangay Marawa, Jaen, also in Nueva Ecija and Teresita Fernando of Sitio Dupax, Barangay Suklayin.
Prado said the arrest was pulled off at around 2 am Friday in Fernando’s house in Dupax.
The arresting team, accompanied by the media and barangay officials, swooped down on suspected drug and seized two sachets of methamphetamine hydrochloride, also known as shabu worth P36,000, a caliber 9 mm revolver, bullets and assorted drug paraphernalia consisting of a portable shabu weighing machine, improvised burners, aluminum foils and others.
Prado said the operation was made following a week-long surveillance and after intelligence reports disclosed rampant sale and use of illegal drugs in the area.
A case for violations of Section 5 (Sale of Dangerous Drugs) of Republic Act 9165, or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002 and RA 10594 was ready for filing before the provincial prosecutor’s office.
Aside from the police, also involved in the raid was Jun Julio of the Department of Justice, barangay councilman Tristan Quijano and others.
Last month, police operatives from the Provincial Intelligence and Investigation Bureau and the Provincial Public Safety Company arrested a fireman tagged as a suspected drug pusher and seized from his possession P300,000 worth of shabu in a raid in a suspected drug tiangge (flea market) in Maria Aurora, Aurora.
The rookie fireman was Fire Officer 2 Reynaldo Bitong of Barangay 2, Maria Aurora town who yielded 23.0321 grams of shabu with a street value of P300,000, a 9 mm caliber pistol and 30 live ammunitions and several drug paraphernalia among them six pieces of heat- sealed plastic sachet and one roll of aluminum foil.
Police said Bitong’s house serves as a tiangge of prohibited drugs in this town, the hometown of Gov. Gerardo Noveras. (Manny Galvez)
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