BAGUIO CITY – A young market vendor who was in possession of some P1.2 million worth of shabu was arrested by anti-narcotics agents of the Cordillera office of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA-CAR) during a buy-bust operation at sitio Gumangan, East Bayan Park here Sunday night.
Gil Castro, PDEA-CAR assistant regional director, identified the arrested suspect as Rasul Palao Macadaya, 20 years old, married, a native of Marawi City and currently residing at Kayang Street, Baguio City was apprehended when he sold a knot-tied transparent plastic cellophane containing white crystalline substance suspected to be shabu to a PDEA-CAR operative who acted as a poseur-buyer.
Upon apprehension, Castro disclosed Macadaya yielded two more plastic cellophanes of shabu which was subsequently confiscated and taken into the possession of the apprehending agents.
The PDEA-CAR official disclosed the drug haul, weighing 284.4358 grams, was valued to be worth One Million Two Hundred Forty Six Thousand One Hundred Thirteen Pesos and Twenty Four Centavos (P 1,246,113.24).
“Our recent operation yielded the biggest amount of prohibited drugs confiscated from illegal drug traders in the city,” Castro said.
He pointed out Macadaya’s arrest will significantly put a dent in the illegal drug trade within the city.
Castro revealed charges of violations of the provisions of Republic Act (RA) 9165 or the Comprehensive Drugs Act of 2002, particularly the illegal sale and possession of prohibited drugs, will be filed against the arrested suspect before the city prosecutor’s office.
Makadaya is temporarily detained at the PDE-CAR detention facility in Camp Dangwa, La Trinidad, Benguet awaiting the resolution of the city prosecutor’s office on the charges filed against him by the apprehending authorities.
Baguio continues to be used as a transhipment area for shabu coming from the lowlands that is being circulated in the different parts of the region and marijuana from the different marijuana-producing areas of the Cordillera which are being shipped to their different potential markets in the lowlands and Metro Manila.
Castro appealed to concerned city and barangay officials to facilitate the reactivation of barangay anti-drug abuse councils (BADACs) in order to help in monitoring the illegal activities of drug traders and pushers so that they will be apprehended and would reduce the supply of drugs being circulated around the city.
Mayor Mauricio G. Domogan commended the anti-narcotics agents for their unrelenting and uncompromising efforts to rid the city with the proliferation of drug traders and pushers in order to help spare the youth from the serious negative effects of using illegal drugs.
“We want our barangay officials to be actively involved in our anti-drug campaign so that we will send a message to drug traders and pushers that they will have no place in our city. Let us further strengthen our combined anti-drug efforts in order to realize our overall objectives of a drug free city,” Domogan stressed.
By Dexter A. See
