Argao cops kill drug suspect in shootout during buy-bust operation

A 43-year-old drug suspect was killed in a shootout with police officers in Argao town in southern Cebu on the late afternoon of Wednesday, January 30.

Richard Padin, who resided in Barangay Taloot of Argao, died after he was shot in the body during the shootout with police officers of the Argao Police Station Drug Enforcement Unit (DEU), who were conducting a buy-bust operation against Padin, said Chief Inspector Rolan Aliser, Argao Police Station chief, in a phone interview with Cebu Daily News Digital on Wednesday.

Aliser said they had monitored Padin’s illegal drug activities for about a month before they conducted the buy-bust operation at past 5 p.m.

He said that Padin must have realized that he was dealing with a police officer and he started shooting at them when they moved in to arrest him.

The police officers fired back and killed Padin.

Recovered from Padin’s body were two firearms — a .38 revolver and a .357 revolver.

Aliser said they had tagged Padin as a newly identified drug suspect after they received several reports about his illegal drug activities.

This prompted their monthlong monitoring of the suspect’s activities.

Aliser said they also recovered suspected shabu from the suspect’s body worth P10,608.

Aside from that, Aliser said they also arrested Padin’s common law wife, Virgie Sumalinog, whom the police officer allegedly identified as a cohort of Padin.

Aliser said that Sumalinog would allegedly take over the selling of illegal drugs when Padin would go to work at a sawmill in the barangay.

He also said that Padin, who grew up in Barangay Tangke in Talisay City, allegedly got his drug supply from that barangay.

Meanwhile, Sumalinog was detained at the Argao Police Station detention cell pending the filing of charges. /dbs