Police scored big in three separate anti-illegal drug operations on Thursday after they arrested five people including a former barangay councilman, whom they described as a slippery high-value target.
Aside from that the police also confiscated suspected shabu with an estimated street value of P1.3 million.
First to fall was Jonathan Dechos, 38, a former barangay councilman of Paknaan in Mandaue City.
Dechos was caught with 40 grams of suspected shabu worth P200,000 during a buy-bust operation in Purok Centro Barangay Canamucan in Compostela, a northern town in Cebu, said PO3 Larry Fernandez of the Compostela Police Station.
Fernandez said they had long monitored Dechos illegal drug operation but he had evaded them time and time again.
On Thursday, Chief Insp. Junafe Vergara, Compostela police chief, led a team of police officers and conducted a buy-bust operation against Dechos that resulted to his arrest.
Dechos was detained at the Compostela Police Station detention cell pending the filing of charges.
Next to fall was a 19-year-old Clinton Galsem of Barangay Inayawan, Cebu City. Galsem was arrested in a buy-bust operation in Carcar City in southern Cebu on Thursday afternoon.
PO2 Celso Yanong of the Carcar City Police Station said that Galsem would get his supply in Cebu City and would sell it in Carcar.
Galsem was caught with P2,000 worth of suspected shabu and was detained at the Carcar City Police Station detention cell pending the filing of charges.
The biggest drug haul for the day came in the last buy-bust operation in Consolacion town in northern Cebu where a 32-year-old pregnant woman, and two men were caught with P1.1 million worth of suspected shabu.
However, the target was Cris Ortega, 29, who was caught with the bulk of the suspected shabu, while Jenny Jaime, the pregnant woman, and Geran Ligan, 29, were caught with five sachets of suspected shabu, said Chief Insp. Pelare, Consolacion police chief, in a phone interview.
Ortega was caught with four large packs of suspected shabu weighing 100 grams with an estimated Dangerous Drugs Board value of P1.1 million.
Pelare said that Ortega refused to name the source of his illegal drugs, but he was going to sell the drugs in Danao City.
The three suspects were detained at the Consolacion Police Station detention cell pending the filing of charges.