CEBU CITY, Philippines — Police in Central Visayas are expecting that the drug trade in Cebu will be crippled for some time without one of its strongest players in the game.
Brigadier General Albert Ignatius Ferro, director of the Police Regional Office in Central Visayas (PRO-7), made the statement following the death of convicted drug lord Rustico Ygot inside the New Bilibid Prison last Friday, October 9, 2020.
An Inquirer.net report said Ygot was confined at Dorm 4C2 of the Maximum Security Compound inside the NBP before he succumbed to heart attack.
“It will somehow cripple the Ygot drug group because he is the standing leader. Without a leader, it will be difficult for them to continue their illicit drug operations,” Ferro said.
Read: Freeze order slapped on properties of alleged drug lord Rustico Ygot
Ferro added that Ygot is one of the players in the illegal drug trade who is “trusted” by international drug groups.
“We are hoping that there will no longer be another Ygot that will take over the leadership,” Ferro said.
Despite Ygot’s conviction in 2013, he is believed to be able to continue his drug operations. The recent P47.6 million drug haul in Cebu City last September was attributed to him.
In 2019, Ygot was discovered to have continued to run his drug ring through the internet after they found that the source of some 28 kilos of shabu valued at P190.4 million that were seized in twin operations pointed to Jocelyn Encila, Ygot’s girlfriend.
Read: Bilibid prisoner linked to the P190.4M-shabu busts runs Cebu drug ring via the internet
Encila’s house was found wired with closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras that the jailed drug dealer had direct access to.
Ygot was also tagged to be behind the killing of Encila’s sister, Janelyn, days after Jocelyn’s arrest. Janelyn, according to the police, worked as an errand girl for Ygot.
Read: Love and drugs: Encila’s life as Consolacion’s drug queen
/bmjo