A 24-year-old fisherman with a standing warrant for selling of illegal drugs was arrested by the police in Daanbantayan today, September 4, 2020. | Photo from CPPO

CEBU CITY, Philippines — A wanted fisherman, who escaped an illegal buy-bust operation last January 2020, was arrested by the Provincial Intelligence Unity (PIU) of the Cebu Police Provincial Office (CPPO) in Sitio Hillside, Barangay Bakhawan, Daanbantayan, Cebu at around 1 p.m. today, September 4, 2020.

Mark Kenneth Ancajas, 24, a resident of Sitio Balintawak, Barangay Kawit, Medellin, did not get the chance to escape the second time around when the police arrived in his hideout to arrest him. He had been hiding from the authorities for about eight months.

Police Lieutenant Colonel Randy Korret, head of the PIU of CPPO, said that Ancajas has a standing warrant for selling of illegal drugs issued by Judge Samson Roy Layese, Presiding Judge of the Regional Trial Court, Branch 61 of Bogo City Cebu.

The warrant was issued on January 28, 2020.

“Bale na at large po sya dati during the arrests,” said Korret.

The PIU chief said that the help of concerned citizens and continuous monitoring when Ancajas was spotted in the area led to the arrest of the suspect.

According to Korret, the CPPO have been focusing on monitoring and arresting wanted personalties especially those involved in illegal drugs following the orders of the Philippine National Police (PNP) headquarters to intensify the campaign against illegal drugs.

“Actually, we are focusing on those wanted persons for illegal drugs in support to the ongoing efforts of the PNP’s war on drugs,” said Korret.

As the police force in central Visayas especially in Cebu continue to conduct operations on wanted persons, Korret said he encouraged those with warrants of arrest to surrender immediately so that their cases would be resolved./dbs

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CEBU CITY, Philippines — Possession and selling of illegal drugs charges are being readied against two men, who were caught with P407,000 worth of suspected shabu in two separate anti-illegal drugs operations on Sunday, September 27, in Barangays Punta Princesa and Labangon in Cebu City.

First to fall was Kenneth Tabada, 30, of Barangay Punta Princesa, Cebu City, who was caught with 10 grams of suspected shabu during a buy-bust operation in his residence at 7:30 p.m., said Police Captain Jonathan dela Cerna, Labangon Police Station chief.

Dela Cerna said that the suspected shabu confiscated from Tabada had an estimated Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB) value of P68,000.

In a follow-up operation at least four hours later or at 11:30 p.m., police arrested Roy Galacio Jr. 19, in his residence where 50 grams of suspected shabu were found.

The confiscated drugs from Galacio have an estimated DDB value of P340,000.

Read: Buy-bust operations in cities of Cebu, Mandaue yield P2.1 M shabu, 2 HVIs

Dela Cerna said that they had placed Tabada and Galacio under surveillance for two weeks before they conducted the separate operations against them.

He said that they considered both suspects as high value individuals in their drug watchlist.

He also said that both men could dispose from 100 grams to 200 grams of suspected shabu in a week.

“Kani sila ilang modus kay meet up ra pud usahay maghatud nakabike usahay maglakaw lang gani,” said Dela Cerna.

(Their modus is to meet up with their clients. Sometimes, they deliver their drugs using a bike or they would just walk to the meetup area.)

He also said that they were also investigating if both men were members of a drug group.

The two suspects were detained at the Labangon Police Station detention cell pending the filing of charges./dbs

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Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) director, Josefino Ligan during one of his online pressers. | CDN file photo

CEBU CITY, Philippines— In just two weeks, P60 million worth of illegal drugs were confiscated by police in Cebu City.

This was reported by Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) director Police Colonel Josefino Ligan during his online presser on Wednesday morning, September 30, 2020.

He reported that from September 14 to 20, they have conducted 32 drug-related operations and arrested 40 drug personalities, which resulted to the confiscation of nearly eight kilos of illegal drugs with the market value of P53, 470, 804.

In the second week of their operations from September 20- 27, they confiscated 1 kilo of illegal drugs with a market value of P 6,937, 292.

In all, authorities were able to seize nine kilos of illegal drugs with a drug board value of P60 million.

Although these arrested drug personalities were from different parts of the city, police are looking into the possibility that these personalities can be connected with the help of a drug matrix and through debriefing.

“We are now making the drug matrix, drug link, although it is still unfinished. We have a software to link all these persons then definitely it will point out to someone else or to whoever the source is,” said Ligan.

/bmjo

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CEBU CITY, Philippines — A Technical Working Group (TWG) has been formed to work on improving security measures in the Cebu City Jail in Barangay Kalunasan here.

The TWG was formed by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency in Central Visayas (PDEA-7), Police Regional Office in Central Visayas (PRO-7), and the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) mainly to concentrate on measures on how to cut cellphone signal from the facility and prevent the smuggling of mobile phones into the facility. Among the plans set by authorities is to add signal jammers.

This became a priority after the PRO-7 found links of an illegal drug trade from inside the jail after a recent drug bust that yielded  P41 million worth of ‘high-grade shabu’ in Barangay Inayawan on Monday, October 5, 2020.

Read: Inayawan raid yields ‘high-grade’ shabu worth P41M

Police Brigadier General Albert Ignatius Ferro, the director of PRO-7, said in previous statements that the two suspects caught in the bust pointed to a certain ‘Jao,’ an inmate at the Cebu City Jail, as their source of shabu, which they also claimed was brought abroad.

In a press conference on October 5, 2020, that Cebu City Jail Warden Julius Arro neither denied nor confirmed the involvement of the said inmate to the drug bust.

However, he said that mobile phones have always been one of the top contrabands inside the jail that they have confiscated from pre-pandemic Greyhound operations.

“I am not denying nor confirming the involvement of the PDL (Persons Deprived of Liberty) in this drug trade. I have knowledge that this PDL has been involved before of transaction or disposing of illegal drugs before through mobile phones,” said Arro.

Read: Inmate as ‘drug leader’ in Metro Cebu?

The warden said Jao denied involvement in the illegal drug trade as his case is murder. Still, the PDEA and the PRO-7 will continue to investigate his connection to the illegal drug trade.

The agencies identified 30 high profile PDLs that are linked to the drug trade, and they are being closely monitored. They are even isolated to keep them away from those with lower charges.

Arro said that this TWG would help them improve the security measures in the jail and prevent the inmates from going back to their old ways and be involved in the illegal drug trade through cellular phones.

PDEA-7 Director Levi Ortiz said the signal jamming of the jails should not only be at the Cebu City Jail but in all jails in Cebu so that drug traders on the ground will not be able to use any of the jail facilities for the illegal drug trade.

/bmjo

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38-year-old ex-convict Eduardo Templa Sambilad is arrested by personnel of the Intelligence Unit of the Cebu Police Provincial Office (CPPO) in a buy-bust operation in Sitio Nangka, Barangay Estaca, Compostela town in northern Cebu at around 2 a.m on Friday, October 9, 2020. | CPPO photo

CEBU CITY, Philippines—It seems that selling drugs is a hard habit to break for Eduardo Templa Sambilad.

This after the 38-year-old ex-convict was arrested anew by personnel of the Intelligence Unit of the Cebu Police Provincial Office (CPPO) in a buy-bust operation in Sitio Nangka, Barangay Estaca, Compostela town in northern Cebu at around 2 a.m on Friday, October 9, 2020.

Sambilad, considered a high-value individual, was arrested with two cohorts identified as Marjorie Apas Danlag, 43, and Dongelito Torion Arnado, 43, all from Barangay Estaca.

According to Police Lieutenant Colonel Randy Korret, head of the Intelligence Unit, they found out during the course of their investigation that Sambilad is an ex-convict, imprisoned for an illegal drug case and was released in 2018.

“Dati yan nakulong for 8 years sa CPDRC (Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center). Lumaya nung 2018,” said Korret.

(He was jailed for eight years at the CPDRC. He was released in 2018.)

Korret said they were able to verify the reports about the illegal drug transactions of Sambilad and his cohorts after putting them under surveillance for a month.

At least 105 grams of suspected shabu worth P714,000 were confiscated during the operation.

Korret said that Sambilad can dispose 200 grams in 5 to 7 days and his areas of disposal are in Danao City, Compostela, Liloan, Consolacion, Mandaue City and some areas in Cebu City.

/bmjo

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CEBU CITY, Philippines — Police in Central Visayas are expecting that the drug trade in Cebu will be crippled for some time without one of its strongest players in the game.

Brigadier General Albert Ignatius Ferro, director of the Police Regional Office in Central Visayas (PRO-7), made the statement following the death of convicted drug lord Rustico Ygot inside the New Bilibid Prison last Friday, October 9, 2020.

An Inquirer.net report said Ygot was confined at Dorm 4C2 of the Maximum Security Compound inside the NBP before he succumbed to heart attack.

“It will somehow cripple the Ygot drug group because he is the standing leader. Without a leader, it will be difficult for them to continue their illicit drug operations,” Ferro said.

Read: Freeze order slapped on properties of alleged drug lord Rustico Ygot

Ferro added that Ygot is one of the players in the illegal drug trade who is “trusted” by international drug groups.

“We are hoping that there will no longer be another Ygot that will take over the leadership,” Ferro said.

Despite Ygot’s conviction in 2013, he is believed to be able to continue his drug operations. The recent P47.6 million drug haul in Cebu City last September was attributed to him.

In 2019, Ygot was discovered to have continued to run his drug ring through the internet after they found that the source of some 28 kilos of shabu valued at P190.4  million that were seized in twin operations pointed to Jocelyn Encila, Ygot’s girlfriend.

Read: Bilibid prisoner linked to the P190.4M-shabu busts runs Cebu drug ring via the internet

Encila’s house was found wired with closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras that the jailed drug dealer had direct access to.

Ygot was also tagged to be behind the killing of Encila’s sister, Janelyn, days after Jocelyn’s arrest. Janelyn, according to the police, worked as an errand girl for Ygot.

Read: Love and drugs: Encila’s life as Consolacion’s drug queen

/bmjo

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Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Junard Chan appeals to the public to report any illegal activities in their areas. This after police confiscated around 22 kilos of suspected shabu in Barangay Suba Basbas, Lapu-Lapu City. Above is a screenshot of a Facebook live video of the PRO-7 shows around 22 kilos of illegal drugs confiscated in an operation in Barangay Subabasbas in Lapu-Lapu City on Wednesday, October 21, 2020.

LAPU-LAPU CITY, Philippines — Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Junard “Ahong” Chan is urging the public to help prevent crimes in their areas by reporting illegal activities there to the Philippine National Police (PNP).

“Atoang panawagan ipadayon nato ang pagtabang sa atong kapulisan, atong mga barangay, atong komunidad, kung duna silay mahibaw-an mahitungod niining mga illegal activities, illegal drugs, palihog ko’g report sa atong kapulisan,” Chan said.

(I am appealing to the public to help our policemen, our barangay, our community, if they have any information about these illegal activities, illegal drugs, then please report them to the police.)

Read: P150M worth of drugs confiscated in Lapu-Lapu City bust

Yesterday, the Lapu-Lapu City Police Office (LCPO) confiscated 22 kilos of suspected shabu, with a P150.3 million Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB) value, and arrested 30-year old Gilbert Fuensalida Lumanog from Cebu City.

The police also impounded the black Toyota Vios, with plate number YKL 974, used by the suspect in transporting the illegal drugs.

Chan also warned those involved in illegal drugs to stay away from Lapu-Lapu City or they would just be arrested.

He believed that the illegal drugs came from Metro Manila and were transported here in the Visayas passing by the city.

“Undang namo kay dili gyud mo kasud diri sa siyudad sa Lapu-lapu kay grabe ang pagbantay sa atong kapulisan dinhi sa siyudad mahitungod sa ilegal nga drugas,” he added.

(Stop your illegal activities because you cannot enter the city of Lapu-Lapu because the policemen here are strictly implementing the campaign against illegal drugs here.)

Police Colonel Clarito Baja, LCPO director, also said that in a secluded area in Barangay Subabasbas at 4:30 pm last Wednesday, an undercover policeman bought suspected shabu from Lumanog using four bundles of boodle money.

Each bundle of money has a P500 bill on top to make it appear that it was a considerable amount of money that they had, especially since the undercover policeman was buying illegal drugs worth P160,000 from Lumanog.

After the transaction with Lumanog was completed, the other policemen moved in and arrested Lumanog.

Baja said that they confiscated 23 heat sealed plastic packs from the suspect.

Baja also said that they had placed the suspect under surveillance before the buy-bust operation was conducted.

He said tha they believed that Lumanog was a member of “Titing Laurenciana Group” a suspected drug group capable of disposing of 20 kilos a week for Metro Cebu, the province and surrounding provinces./dbs

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William Ledesma lies dead in front of a house of a Valladolid, Carcar City resident. Ledesma was shot and hacked by an assailant on Sunday morning, November 1, 2020. | Contributed photo

SANTA CATALINA, NEGROS ORIENTAL, Philippines — Was the brutal killing of a Barangay Valladolid, Carcar City resident, who was shot and hacked dead on Sunday morning, November 1, 2020, a drug-related crime?

This is one of the possible motives in the killing of the victim, Wilson Ledesma, that police are investigating. Ledesma was shot several times and hacked dead, in Barangay Poblacion in Carcar City at past 11 a.m. on November 1.

Police Corporal Argie Noel Espinoza of the Carcar City Police Station said that this was one of the possible motives that they were investigating especially since the assailant before leaving the dead Ledesma of Barangay Valladolid, allegedly threw a sachet of suspected shabu on the body of the victim.

“O, imo na ni (O, this is yours),” said Espinoza quoting witnesses, who saw the assailant hack the victim and heard him say this when he allegedly threw a small plastic pack at the body of the victim before he left.

Espinoza said that they had identified the assailant, but they were withholding the assailant’s name because of the ongoing hot pursuit operation against him.

Initial investigation showed that at past 11 a.m. on Sunday, residents in Barangay Poblacion heard shots fired near a piggery in the area and a few minutes later saw a bloodied Ledesma appear from the house near the piggery.

“Ni abot daw ni sa tugkaran unya nangayo og tabang unya nagka dugo na,” said Espinoza.

(The bloodied victim suddenly appeared in their doorstep and asked for help.)

However, the residents, whom Ledesma sought help,  could only helplessly watch the victim because the assailant, who was armed with a gun and a bolo, was pursuing Ledesma, who at that time fell to the ground because of his gunshot wounds.

The assailant, who then caught up with Ledesma, hacked him several times. 

After that, the assailant allegedly threw a small plastic pack believed to contain suspected shabu at the body of the victim and fled the area./dbs

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Contributed Photo

CEBU CITY, Philippines – Illegal drugs worth at least P1.2 million were seized from a female suspect during a buy-bust operation held at dawn on Monday, November 9, in Asturias town.

The suspect, who was identified as Marian Torion, 31, was arrested near her residence in Barangay Uwak, Asturias town at around 3 a.m.

Asturias police reported having confiscated a total of 500 grams of white crystalline substance placed inside two transparent plastics with a street value of around P1.2 million from Torion, a solo parent.

Police Captain Jelfred Baroman of the Asturias Police Station said they recently received an intelligence report, informing them that Torion was peddling illegal drugs in their town.

“Shortly before the buy-bust was carried out, our station received an intelligence report saying the suspect was capable of disposing of large quantities of illegal drugs,” Baroman said in Cebuano.

Asturias is a third-class municipality located approximately 75 kilometers northwest of Cebu City.

RELATED STORY: P150M worth of drugs confiscated in Lapu-Lapu City bust

/ dcb

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Talisay City Mayor Gerald Anthony Gullas visits the youth in Barangay Cansojong. | Photo Courtesy of Talisay City PIO

CEBU CITY, Philippines — The youth of Talisay City in southern Cebu have been encouraged to proactively fight the spreading use of illegal drugs among their age group.

Mayor Gerald Anthony “Samsam” gave this challenge to the city’s youth as the city government continued to visit barangays and conduct dialogues with these young people to discuss the ill effects of using illegal drugs through their Kabataan Kontra Droga at Terrorismo (KKDAT) program.

The mayor was in Barangay Cansojong on November 18, 2020, to talk to the youth and explain to them the proactive approach the city government was taking to eradicate illegal drug use.

“I believe this is a very important part of our Oplan Limpyo Talisay. With its implementation, our youth led by our SK (Sangguniang Kabataan), youth organizations and the LYDO (Local Youth Development Office) will play a big part in the future for our city,” said Gullas.

The Oplan Limpyo Talisay was launched in 2019 as a “holistic” approach to the city’s then rampant drug problem. The program did not only encourage continuous apprehensions, it also engaged the community to help in fighting illegal drugs.

Gullas provided a short report to the youth in Cansojong over the accomplishment of the Oplan Limpyo Talisay and urged them to contribute to the city’s program.

The mayor said that in his administration, at least 700 illegal drug personalities had been apprehended with over P50 million worth of drugs confiscated.

The rehabilitation program or aftercare program has been considered a success as well and now being replicated in other local government units (LGUs).

The aftercare program already helped 339 completers in 2019, and despite the ongoing pandemic, managed to help 60 completers of the program in 2020.

“Angay tabangan ang tawo na gusto mag usab. Angay tabangan ang tawo na gusto og 2nd chance and want to change for the better. The difficult part is if dili interested ang tawo, then most likely they will end up in prison. But people who want to change and make something better in their lives deserve a second chance as well,” said the mayor.

(People who wanted to be helped deserved to be helped. People who wanted a second chance and want to change for the better deserved to be helped. The difficult part is if that person in not interested in getting the help he needed, then most likely they end up in prison. But people who want to change and make something in their lives deserve a second chance as well.)

Gullas said that while they were continuously visiting barangays to encourage the residents to go drug-free, two barangays were actually on its way to being one.

The city is working with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) for these two barangays to be declared drug-free soon.

The mayor is hoping that the youth will be encouraged by these programs set by the city government to fight the use of illegal drugs in the city./dbs

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Cebu City, Philippines—Three drug personalities were reportedly killed at past 11 p.m. Thursday, June 10, 2021, in a shootout with anti-drug operatives in Barangay Taptap here. 

One of the suspects killed in an anti drug operation late Thursday night, June 10, 2021, in Barangay Taptap, Cebu City. Authorities were able to recover 10 kilos of suspected shabu with a value of almost P70 million. | contributed photo

Seized from the suspects, who were on board a Toyota Vios sedan, were 10 kilos of suspected shabu with a Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB) value of more or less P70 million.

An agent checks the packs of suspected shabu recovered in the operation. | contributed photo

The joint operation was conducted by agents from the Cebu City Police Office, Drug Enforcement Group and the Police Regional Office in Central Visayas (PRO-7).

These are the items confiscated in an anti-drug operation that led to the killing of three suspects in Barangay Taptap, Cebu City on Thursday night, June 10, 2021. | contributed photo

Barangay Taptap is a mountain village in Cebu City that is around 23 kilometers west of the city proper.

/bmjo

READ MORE:

Montejo: PRO-7 ‘winning’ in fight vs illegal drugs

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CPPO Director Engelbert Soriano. CDN Digital photo |

CEBU CITY, Philippines — The top policeman of Cebu province is calling on the policeman-brother of slain businessman Gavino Sanchez to coordinate with province policemen and help them in the investigation of the murder of his brother and his brother’s wife.

Police Colonel Engelbert Soriano, Cebu Police Provincial Office director, made the call today, June 21, to the policeman-brother of the slain businessman, who is a police official assigned in the regional police office.

Soriano’s appeal came after provincial policemen found it difficult to gather evidence in the killing of the Sanchez couple — businessman Gavino Sanchez and his wife Arlene — because only a few witnesses had coordinated with them.

“Sabi ko sa kanya, ini encourage ko kung makarating sa kanya, sana na tulongan na lang nya kami, kasi baka mag conflict lang kaming dalawa ba. Eh kung mayrong syang sa tingin nya material yung ebedensya na nasa kanya. Eh di pumunta sya sa akin o sa san Fernando para makipagtulongan,” he said.

(I am telling him and I encourage that this may reach him,  that he will coordinate with us and help us because we might end up having a a misunderstanding with each other. If he believes that he has materials, the pieces of evidence, are with him, then he should come to me or to the San Fernando Police Station and help in the investigation.)

Despite having no solid leads yet in the investigation of the killings, Soriano said that they were checking three possible motives in the  shooting death of the couple.

The Sanchez couple of Minglanilla town were found dead inside their Mitsubishi Strada pickup in Barangay Tananas, San Fernando town in southern Cebu on June 18.

This was after their daughter reported them missing on June 17 or a day after the couple hurriedly left the house allegedly bringing with them P5 million cash and pieces of jewelry worth another P5 million.

That is according to the daughter of the victims.

Soriano said that they would look into these reports about the couple bringing that big amount of money and jewelry, which had allegedly gone missing.

Aside from that, he said that they were not also discounting the possibility that the couple were abducted and robbed.

And also, he said that they were verifying reports about the killing being allegedly a drug-related one.

Soriano, however, said that these reports especially the drug-related one had yet to be confirmed, but we would be verifying this information.

He also said that their goal was to assure the Cebuanos of their safety.

”Isa lang po ang ano namin dito is we have really to go into the circumstances of this case kasi ayaw naman natin na mag create ito ng na maging uneasy yung mga Cebuano at mag worry sila sa kanilang security and safety sa probinsya,” he added.

(One goal for us is to really go into the circumstances of this case because we do not want to create a situation where Cebuanos would have to worry about the security and safety in the province.)

As of now, Soriano said that the San Fernando Police Station and Minglanilla Police Station are conducting a parallel investigation on the case.

RELATED STORIES
‘Abducted’ couple from Minglanilla town found dead in San Fernando, Cebu

Probe on murdered couple continues as P10M cash, jewelry reported missing

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Policemen from Talisay City Police Station confiscate 10 grams of suspected shabu found in a drug suspect’s house in Barangay Jaclupan, Talisay City. | Contributed photo

CEBU CITY, Philippines — A suspected drug dealer used his six-year-old son as a shield as he fired at policemen during a buy-bust operation on Thursday night in Talisay City, and jumped off a cliff to make good his escape.

Efren Espina, who is in his mid 30s, wounded one of the policemen, who could not fire back because of Espina’s child during the anti-illegal drug operation at past 7 p.m., said Police Lieutenant Colonel Gerard Ace Pelare, Talisay City Police Station chief, in an interview on July 16.

Pelare said Patrolman Gilbert James Lusica, who was wounded in the shoulder, was declared in stable condition at the hospital.

As for Espina, Pelare said he had remained at large but they were conducting a hot pursuit operation against him.

Investigation showed that the policemen were approaching Espina’s house in Barangay Jaclupan during the buy-bust operation on Thursday night, July 15, when Espina, who must have realized that they were policemen, quickly grabbed his six-year-old son, used him as a shield,  pulled out his .45 caliber pistol, and fired at the approaching policemen as he moved to the back of the house to the edge of the cliff.

He then let go of his son as he reached the edge of the cliff and jumped.

Pelare also said that the policemen were at a disadvantage when Espina fired at them because Espina’s house was at an elevated portion of a hill and the policemen were on the lower portion of that hill.

Barangay Jaclupan is a mountain barangay in Talisay City in southern Cebu.

That is aside from the suspect using his son as a shield so that the policemen could not fire back at him.

“In the process, he was using his child as a shield. Murag iyang gihostage ang bata, so our police cannot retaliate kay naa may bata. Until such time na siguro (hapit) nahurot iyang bala, nilukso siya didto sa cliff sa likod while withdrawing, namusil sya,” he added.

(In the process, he was using his child asa shield. It seemed that he took his child hostage, so our police could not retaliate because of the child. Until when he realized that he was running out of bullets, he continued firing at policemen as he withdrew to the back of the house near the cliff and jumped after he let go of his child.)

Pelare said that they believed that Espina, a suspected drug dealer, survived the jump because they could not find his body at the bottom of the cliff.

The Talisay City police chief described Espina as a high value target in their watch list of drug personalities that they had been trying to catch for quite a while.

“Dugay na ni siya nga gipangita namo. He is one of the few remaining high profile personalities nga atong gipangita pero dili man siya magsige sa Jaclupan. Muanha ra na siyag kalit unya mulakaw ra pod,” Pelare said.

(We have been looking for him for quite a while. He is one of the few remaining high profile personalities that we have been trying to locate but he seldomed visit Jaclupan. He would just suddenly visit there, then would just leave right away.)

Pelare also said that the the suspected drug dealer was armed with a .45 caliber pistol, which he used against the policemen.

He said that despite Espina’s escape the policemen managed to confiscate 10 grams of suspected shabu, which they found inside Espina’s house.

Pelare said that the suspected shabu had an estimated market value of P66,000.

RELATED STORIES

Real estate agent supplying drugs to a drug den busted in Mandaue City

Drug den maintainer, six visitors arrested in Kamputhaw buy-bust

26 drug surrenderees in Talisay City graduate from rehab program

Buy-bust in Cebu City: Former DJ, waiter caught with P340K shabu

/dbs

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A taxi driver from Lapu-Lapu City was gunned down by still unidentified assailants in Barangay Canamucan II, Conpostela town, on Monday morning, July 19, 2021. | Photo from Compostela PS

CEBU CITY, Philippines — A taxi driver was gunned down in Barangay Canamucan II in the town of Compostela, northern Cebu on Monday morning, July 19, 2021. 

Police Lieutenant Samuel Negro, chief of the Compostela Police Station, said the the victim, identified as Antonio Taneo, was nabbed in Lapu-Lapu City in 2018 for selling and possession of illegal drugs.

With this and the fact that personnel from the Scene of the Crime Operatives (SOCO) found a small sachet of suspected ‘shabu’ inside the victim’s bag, Negro said that they are not discounting the possibility that this shooting incident is drug-related.

Negro, though, said they are still investigating the shooting and that they do not have leads on the suspects. But he believes that the suspects and the victim may have known each other.

“Murag iyang assailant ani, murag iyang kaila or contact ra kay wa man siyay pasahero unya pag abot daw didto sa area, suma pa sa witness, gipusil kuno diretso,” Negro said.

(Maybe the assailant is someone the victim knows or is a contact since he did not have any passengers when he arrived in the area where, according to the witness, he was shot right away.)

Negro said it is too early to say that this is on drug-related alone.

For now, Negro said that they will coordinate with the owner of the taxi cab driven by Taneo to ask if they could use footage from the dash camera as evidence, hoping they can get leads from it. He also added that they are looking to some security cameras nearby the area where the incident took place.

According to Negro, all they got now is a statement from a witness who said that at around 7 a.m., he noticed a motorcycle with two individuals onboard, who seemed like they were contacting someone through a cellphone. Both, however, could not be identified since they were wearing face masks.

They have yet to verify if these two individuals were the persons who shot Taneo.

Negro said that this is the first shooting incident in Compostela this month.

/bmjo

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e-bike pedicab driver shot dead in Talisay

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Scene of the Crime Operatives (SOCO) assess the crime scene where a man was shot dead by still unidentified assailants in Sitio Cabancalan I in Barangay Bulacao, Cebu City on Saturday evening, July 24. | Paul Lauro

CEBU CITY, Philippines — Police investigators are considering personal grudge and illegal drugs as possible motives in the killing of a 27-year-old man in Sitio Cabancalan I, Barangay Bulacao, Cebu City on Saturday night, July 24.

Police Major Caesar Acompañado, chief of the Pardo Police Station, said Raymart Ocariza was killed six months after he was released from the Talisay City Jail where he was imprisoned for six years for the possession of an unlicensed firearm and illegal drugs.

Acompañado said the killing may be related to what Raymart did in the past.

But he already begged from providing additional information while they continue to investigate the case.

Joel, Raymart’s 51-year-old father, said he is unaware if his son had enemies.

According to witnesses, Raymart was sitting on a parked tricycle located a few meters away from their home in Sitio Cabancalan I when two still unidentified men approached and shot him from behind at about 8:30 p.m. on Saturday.

But he still managed to stand, walk a few steps and ask for help before he fell on the road.

Raymart, who sustained five bullet wounds at his chest, abdomen, neck, and left arm, was already dead when rescuers arrived, Acompañado said.

Police investigators recovered six empty shells and one live ammunition at the crime scene.

Residents in the area, Acompañado said, claimed to have heard a total of seven gun bursts.

Acompañado said the empty shells will be subjected to ballistic examination to determine the kind of firearm that was used in Raymart’s killing.

They are also looking for CCTV recordings that will help them identify the two suspects.

Raymart’s killing was already the third that happened in areas that are within the jurisdiction of the Pardo Police Station in less than two months.

On July 10, the body of a man, who was believed to be a salvage victim, was found dumped in Sitio Marag in the mountain barangay of  Sudlon II.

Acompañado said they continue to investigate the case while they also wait for family member to identify the victim and claim the body.

READ: Dead man in Sudlon II remains unidentified

Last June 26,  a Talisay City resident was also killed while in Santa Lucia in Cabancalan I because of an unpaid debt amounting to P2, 000.

Murder charges were already filed against three suspects who remain at large as of this posting.

READ: Talisay City resident killed over P2k ‘unpaid debt’

/ dcb

The post Police: Grudge, drugs possible motives in killing of ex-con in Brgy Bulacao, Cebu City appeared first on Cebu Daily News.

A 27-year-old man alleged as a supplier of drugs in a drug den in Barangay Basak San Nicolas, Cebu City, was arrested during a buy-bust operation conducted by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA-7) operatives on Sunday, September 26. | Photo courtesy of PDEA-7

CEBU CITY, Philippines —The alleged supplier of illegal drugs in a drug den in Barangay Basak San Nicolas was arrested during a follow-up buy-bust operation of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA-7) operatives on Sunday afternoon, September 26.

Leia Alcantara, PDEA-7 spokesperson, identified the suspect as Glenn Samson who was also known as Samuel Tabada, 27, who is a resident of Barangay Basak San Nicolas, Cebu City.

Samson was arrested a few hours in his house after the arrest of seven individuals and the shutting down of a drug den in the barangay.

READ: Errand boy, 6 others arrested in drug den in Basak San Nicolas

A tip about Samson’s illegal drug activities sent to the Isumbong Mo kay Wilkins, PDEA’s social media platform intended for reporting illegal drug activities in their respective areas, resulted to the arrest of Samson.

Samson was caught with a gram of suspected shabu during a buy-bust operation.

Alcantara said that Samson was one of the newly identified drug personalities who allegedly supplied drug dens in Barangay Basak San Nicolas.

This included the suspected drug den in the barangay that was shut down by the PDEA-7 agents on Saturday, Sept. 25. 

Seven individuals were arrested and 12 grams of suspected shabu with a market value of P81,600 were confiscated during the PDEA-7 operation.

Alacantara said that Barangay Basak San Nicolas in Cebu City was among the 23 areas listed as barangays that were ‘seriously affected’ by drugs in the city.

This means that these barangays have drug den maintainers, protectors, pushers, and users who operate within their community.

Alcantara said that Samson was detained at the PDEA-7 holding facility located in Sudlon, Barangay Lahug pending the filing of charges.

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/dbs

The post ‘Drug supplier’ nabbed after PDEA-7 shuts down drug den in Cebu City brgy appeared first on Cebu Daily News.

At least eight individuals including two women were arrested after operatives conducted a buy-bust operation past noon on Tuesday, October 5, 2021, in Sitio Tinabangay, Brgy. Mambaling, Cebu City. | Photo from PNP-SOU-7

CEBU CITY, Philippines — At least eight persons including two women were arrested after operatives conducted a buy-bust operation on a drug den in Sitio Tinabangay in Barangay Mambaling, Cebu City, around 12:40 p.m. on Tuesday, October 5, 2021.

Police Major Alejandro Batobalonos, chief of the Philippine National Police (PNP) Special Operations Unit (SOU-7), identified the subject of the buy-bust as Kaypee Pia, male, jobless, 31, and a resident of Barangay San Nicolas, Cebu City.

Others nabbed along with Pia were Jesus Espina, 37; Rexon  Ylaya, 37; John Paul  Salgado, 40; Mathew Froilan Aganan, 39, Junery Eran, 36; Ramelisa  Donaire, 26, and Rosemarie  Dela Cruz, 24.

The seven were from different barangays in Cebu City and Camotes, police said.

Operatives recovered at least 35.58 grams of ‘shabu’ inside the drug den which has an estimated market value of P241, 944, and some drug paraphernalia.

Batobalonos said that their operation stemmed from the complaints of concerned residents regarding the alleged drug den in the sitio. He disclosed that this was the third time that they conducted an operation in the said drug den but different maintainers kept coming back.

“Mao nga amoa lang gyud nga giguba, gipadismantle nako ang mga suyupanan kay kapila na raid-a pero mao gihapon, balikan lang gihapon. Balay ni siya pero gihimoan ba og atop, gibungbungan, pero suyupanan na gyud sya, kanang gisibay sibay. Kanang gitapot lang sa balay,” Batobalonos said.

According to Batobalonos, the previous owner of the drug den was already arrested and Pia took over its operations.

Batobalonos added that Pia would sell ‘shabu’ in his house then would let his customers use the dismantled drug den to sniff the illegal substance.

Batobalonos also said that Pia was engaged in the illegal drug trade for quite some time now considering that his customers were coming from the different barangays in Cebu City and even Cebu province.

Upon interrogation, Pia allegedly claimed that he was previously jailed for shoplifting. Police said this was the first time that the suspect was arrested for illegal drugs.

Batobalonos said that Pia can dispose of from 150 to 200 grams of ‘shabu’ per week and that his source of illegal drugs is an inmate from the Cebu City Jail.

Batobalonos said that the drug problem in Barangay Mambaling is still rampant like the neighboring Barangay Duljo Fatima which is why drug peddlers there find it easy to maintain drug dens.

Police said they would be conducting more raids in the two barangays

Batobalonos credited the community’s cooperation for the success of their drug operations.

READ: Duljo Fatima drug den dismantled, 8 arrested

/rcg

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Police Lieutenant Colonel Gerard Pelare [left], Police Colonel Engelbert Soriano [center], and Police Lieutenant Colonel Randy Caballes [right] during the turnover ceremony on Monday, November 22, 2021, at the Talisay City Hall. | Photo taken from Randy Caballes FB page

Newly installed city police chief Police Lieutenant Colonel Randy Caballes has vowed to continue with this success.

Caballes, the former chief of the Cebu City Police Office Intelligence Unit, was installed chief of the Talisay City Police Station on Monday, November 22, 2021. He replaces Police Lieutenant Colonel Gerard Pelare, who completed his two years assignment since he was assigned in the city last October 2019.

Pelare’s two year-leadership helped Talisay City in initiating Oplan Limpyo Talisay or their campaign against illegal drugs proliferation in the city.

During Pelare’s term of duty, the city has also declared at least two barangays as drug cleared. Also, various groups of barangay defenders were also created, which served as the extended force of the policemen there in conducting night patrols.

Recently, Police Colonel Engelbert Soriano, director of the Cebu Police Provincial Office (CPPO), said that Talisay’s Oplan Limpyo campaign has helped in controlling the illegal drug trade activities in the city.

Caballes has served as chief of CCPO-CIU for two years who also received the award as the Best Junior Police Commissioned Officer for Operations in CCPO.

As for the upcoming election period, Caballes said that security preparations have also been readied to secure safe and fair elections in the city.

Caballes officially assumed his post on Monday, November 22, during the turnover ceremony held at the Talisay City Hall.

/bmjo

READ: New Talisay police chief assumes office, vows to continue war against drugs in the city

The post Newly installed Talisay police chief vows to continue relentless drugs campaign appeared first on Cebu Daily News.

At least 1.8 kilos of ‘shabu’ were confiscated after police conducted a buy-bust operation that led to the arrest of a 39-year-old man in Barangay Tungkil, Minglanilla, on Sunday evening, December 5, 2021. | Photo from Minglanilla PS

CEBU CITY, Philippines – Cebu City police on Wednesday, March 2, arrested a drug personality with P816,000 worth of suspected shabu during a buy-bust operation at around 7:15 pm in Baranggay Mabolo, Cebu City.

The Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA-7) in a press release, identified the suspect as Rhey Sypieco “Ton” Belhida, 25 years old, a resident of Sitio Lahing-lahing II, Brgy. Mabolo, Cebu City.

The suspect is now under the custody of Police Station 4.

PBGEN Roque Eduardo DP Vega, regional director of Police Regional Office (PRO-7) said authorities seized at least 210 grams of shabu with a street value of P816,000.

Vega said they were also able to confiscate a sling bag containing the P500 buy-bust money.

The suspected shabu seized from the suspect will be turned over to the PNP Forensic Unit 7 for examination.

The suspect will be facing charges for violation of the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.     /rcg

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Medics attend to an injured John Rey Jaca moments after he was shot by unidentified assailants onboard a white SUV along Mango Avenue on Wednesday night, March 16.

CEBU CITY, Philippines — Police are eyeing drugs as the possible motive behind the shooting of a man along General Maxilom Avenue, Barangay Cogon, Ramos Cebu City on Wednesday night, March 16, 2022.

This angle was brought up by the police after they learned that the victim, John Rey Jaca, 31, of Barangay Labangon, had several drug-related cases in the past.

According to Police Lieutenant Colonel Maria Theresa Macatangay, information officer of the Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) the police are looking into several possibilities, but the victim’s involvement in illegal drugs was the most relevant.

“Based on the report of Station 2, initial nila na findings naa kuno ni kaso sa illegal drugs kaning victim. Active kuno ni nga case but still we’re trying to find out because daghan man ug anggulo.” said Macatangay.

Investigators are also actively searching for CCTV footage from nearby establishments to crack the case, Macatangay, however, said that CCTVs installed around the area may be dysfunctional or broken.

“Along Mango Avenue, na dira dapita nahitabo ang krimen, not all CCTVs there are working. So our investigators are scouting the area kung asa possible ni agi or ni gikan and ni exit ang maong vehicle,” said Macatangay.

Police are also banking on the cooperation of the victim to be able to gain sizeable leads into the shooting incident which left him injured.

Jaca was leisurely cruising along the area when he was tailed by a white Fortuner.

“This one nagbike siya and then out of nowhere naay nisunod unya gipunterya siya but what is clear siya gyud ang target.” said Macatangay

A witness said that the assailant got out from the passenger seat of the SUV and shot the victim hitting him on the belly and thigh.

Police are currently conducting a hot pursuit operation to arrest the assailants.

Rescuers were able to rush Jaca to the nearest hospital where he is currently recuperating from his wounds.     /rcg

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