A 28-year-old drug suspect was arrested in Barangay Ubujan, Tagbilaran City on Friday, February 11, 2022. | Photo from PDEA-7
CEBU CITY, Philippines — A tip coming from a concerned citizen led to the arrest of a man whose name appears on the target list of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency in Central Visayas (PDEA-7.)
Ronal Lopena, 28, was arrested in a buy-bust operation on Friday, February 11, in his home in barangay Ubujan in Tagbilaran City, Bohol, says PDEA-7 spokesperson Leia Alcantara.
Agents confiscated 11 packs of suspected shabu weighing at least five grams and worth P34, 000 from the suspect’s home.
Friday’s operation was made in coordination with the Regional Police Drug Enforcement Unit ( Bohol), Tagbilaran City Police Station, and Bohol Maritime Police Station (MARPSTA).
Alcantara said they placed Lopena under surveillance for two months after they received a tip on his illegal drugs operation through their agency’s “Isumbong Mo Kay Wilkins” Facebook page.
“Isumbong Mo Kay Wilkins” is PDEA’s initiative to empower communities in reporting the presence of illegal drug activities in their respective areas.
READ: PDEA-7 to public: Continue reporting drug activities through ‘Isumbong Mo Kay Wilkins’
During their monitoring, they learned that Lopena is able to dispose at least 50 grams of illegal drugs per week to buyers in Tagbilaran City and the neighboring municipalities in Bohol province.
He was included in PDEA regional targetlist because of the volume of shabu that he is able to dispose and the location of his operation which included areas where homes and schools are situated.
Lopena is now detained at Tagbilaran City Police Station while law enforcers continue to investigate his case and identify his cohorts and illegal drugs supplier.
Alcantara said the suspect’s arrest gives a boost to their illegal drugs campaign in Bohol province.
As of this writing, Alcanatara said, a total of 393 of the 1, 109 barangays on the island province have so far been declared as drug-cleared while 17 are now considered as drug-free.
“Out of the 1,109 barangays in Bohol, we already have 393 drug-cleared and 17 drug-free (certified unaffected) barangays, and we aim to assist more. This is not impossible with the support and commitment of local chief executives and the people in the communities. In fact, Bohol has sustained the implementation of the Barangay Drug Clearing Program (BDCP) through the efforts of their Anti-Drug Abuse Councils and the institutionalization of community-based drug rehab programs in the province,” Alcantara added.
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