TINGLAYAN, Kalinga – More than P858.9 million worth of marijuana plants were successfully destroyed and burned by combined police operatives and anti-narcotics agents during an aggressive 9-day marijuana eradication operation at Mount Chumancil in barangays Buscalan and Loccong from April 29 to May 7, 2024.
Police authorities said that the operation yielded significant results, with the discovery of 3,349,500 fully grown marijuana plants and 1,575,000 grams of dried marijuana stalks with fruiting tops, totaling P858,800,900.00 in value. These marijuana plants were found across twenty-seven marijuana plantation sites at Mt. Chumancil, spanning the Barangays of Buscalan and Loccong in the municipality of Tinglayan.
During the said operation, Police Brig. Gen. David K. Peredo, Jr., regional director of the Police Regional Office (PRO) in the Cordillera, and other PRO Cordillera key officers personally participated in the uprooting and burning of the seized marijuana plants showing their commitment to end marijuana cultivation in the province and to ensure the safety of all the personnel conducting the operation.
The success of Oplan Highlander was made possible through the collaborative efforts of anti-illegal drugs operatives from the PNP Drug Enforcement Group, Special Operations Unit-CAR, Regional Drug Enforcement Unit, Kalinga Police Provincial Office, Regional Intelligence Division, 11 SAB PNP SAF, TOG2, Philippine Air Force, PCG-Northeastern Luzon District, Regional Mobile Force Battalion 15, 503rd Brigade Philippine Army, National Intelligence Coordinating Agency-CAR, PDEA-CAR, and Philippine Coast Guard.
As of press time, operatives are conducting follow-up investigations to identify possible cultivators. They are also engaging with the barangay to encourage community members to provide information on cultivators and continue supporting the PNP’s anti-illegal drug campaign. By Dexter A. See
