Marijuana plants worth P2.8M burned in Toledo City; 5 nabbed

At least 7,000 stalks of fully grown marijuana plants worth at least P2.8 million have been destroyed in an operation this morning (March 30, 2020) at the mountain barangay of General Climaco, Toledo City. The operation was conducted by policemen of the Regional Mobile Force Battalion in Central Visayas (RFMB-7). | Contributed photo

CEBU CITY, Philippines — Five persons were arrested and least P2.8 million worth of fully grown marijuana plants were uprooted by the Regional Mobile Force Battalion in Central Visayas (RMFB-7) during a police operation in Barangay General Climaco, Toledo City, Cebu this morning, March 30, 2020.

Police Captain Emmanuel Rabaya of the RMFB-7, identified the suspects as Harry Macapaz, Jerlito Sedavia, Isidro Canaliso, Michael Candilada and Benjie Candilada, from the same area.

Based on the initial investigation, Rabaya said the five suspects were caught attending to the plants when the police arrived int he area after a concerned citizen reported about the plantation in the area.

Rabaya said that it took them two weeks of monitoring before they were able to chance upon catching the cultivators of the illegal plants.

As of this time, the Toledo City police are still conducting profiling of the arrested individuals.

In the initial interview with the suspects, Rabaya said that upon the arrest, these five persons claimed that they were exchanging the plants for shabu, but they later claimed they were growing it because they believed the plants were the cure for the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

The five suspects are now detained in the Toledo City Police Station pending the filing of the charges for violating Republic Act 9165 or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act./dbs