Six men were arrested in buy-bust operation while along Iodine Street in Barangay Tungkil, Minglanilla on the evening of Black Saturday, April 11, 2020. | Photo Courtesy of PIB-CPPO
CEBU CITY, Philippines — The implementation of the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) did not stop these men from peddling illegal drugs.
But their illegal activity came to an end after they were arrested in a buy-bust operation along Iodine Street in Barangay Tungkil in Minglanilla town in southern Cebu at about 10:30 p.m. on Black Saturday, April 11, 2020.
Arrested were Mark June Bartolabac, 25; Neil Alfeche, 28; Rafael Adato, 27; Roderick Alicaya, 37; Victor Canoy, 22; and Vincent Aligarme, 27.
Bartolabac, who was the subject of the buy-bust operation, and Adato are both from Barangay Tangke in Naga City while Alfeche and Canoy are from Barangay West Poblacion of the same city. Alicaya is from Barangay Cantib-ang in Minglanilla town while Aligarme is from Barangay Poblacion in Naga City.
All of the six suspects are now detained at the detention facility of the Cebu Police Provincial Office while complaints for the violation of the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002 are prepared against them.
Conag said they placed Bartolabac under surveillance for two weeks prior to the Saturday night buy-bust operation.
He said that a previously arrested drug suspected pointed at Bartolabac as his shabu supplier.
But Conag refused to provide additional information on the recently arrested drug suspect because of ongoing follow up operations.
“Meron naman kaming background pero kasi follow up yan tapos yung tropa baka ma burn out meron kami oras na hinahabol” Conag said.
(We already have Bartolabac’s background but (I cannot divulge this to the public) we are still doing follow up operations and I cannot risk the efforts of our troops.) / dcb