P4M worth of marijuana plants uprooted in Toledo City; cultivators escaped

Another marijuana plantation site was discovered in Toledo City where P4 million worth of fully grown marijuana plants were uprooted on Friday morning, July 22, 2022. | Photo courtesy of PDEA-7

CEBU CITY, Philippines —  Authorities uprooted P4 million worth of fully grown marijuana plants at a plantation site located at Sitio Hikapon, Barangay General Climaco in Toledo City on Friday morning, July 22, 2022.

Leia Alcantara, the spokesperson of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA-7), said that a total of 10,000 fully grown marijuana plants were uprooted from a plantation site covering around 1,000 square meters.

Alcantara added that it took three hours for authorities to reach the site.

Personnel of the PDEA-7, Cebu Police Provincial Office and Intelligence Section, 2nd Provincial Mobile Force Company, and Toledo City Police Station, conducted the early morning marijuana eradication operation.

The said operation stemmed from a report the authorities said they received from a confidential informant.

However, they were not able to arrest the alleged cultivators after the latter sensed their arrival.

Alcantara identified the two alleged cultivators as Richard Cañaleso and his brother, Caloy Cañaleso.

DRUG DENS DISMANTLED

Meanwhile, two drug dens were dismantled during two separate buy-bust operations in Cebu City and Sibulan town in Negros Oriental resulting in the arrest of seven individuals on Thursday, July 21, 2022.

The first operation was conducted around 1:40 p.m. on Thursday where PDEA-7 personnel conducted a buy-bust operation in Barangay Carreta in Cebu City.

The operation resulted in the shutting down of a drug den and the arrest of four individuals including the alleged drug den maintainer.

Alcantara identified the arrested suspects as Manuel Sotelliza, 69, jobless and the alleged drug den maintainer; drug den employee Antonieta Gonzaga, 28, jobless; and drug den visitors Jimmy Allarse, 34, jobless, and Wilfredo Camanceli Jr., 29, jeepney driver.

Operatives confiscated at least 13 packs of suspected shabu weighing around 10 grams from the area with an estimated market value of P68,000.

The suspects are currently detained at the PDEA-7 detention facility in Sudlon, Barangay Lahug, Cebu City.

On the same day, at around 3:15 p.m., personnel of the PDEA Negros Oriental Provincial Office also dismantled a drug den and arrested three individuals in Barangay Cangmating in Sibulan town.

The suspects were identified as alleged drug pusher Junjun  Bahinting, 25, jobless; drug den maintainer Abraham  Asaral, 36, construction worker; and drug den visitor Dave B. Calingacion, 33, jobless.

At least 13 grams of suspected shabu worth P88,4000 were confiscated from the suspects.

READ: Junk shop worker falls in Hipodromo buy-bust

/rcg