A councilor of Barangay Mainit in Naga City, Cebu, is arrested via virtue of a search warrant past noon on Tuesday, August 23, 2022. | Photo from PDEA-7
CEBU CITY, Philippines — A 50-year-old councilor of Barangay Mainit in Naga City, Cebu, was arrested after authorities found illegal drugs inside his residence via virtue of a search warrant on Tuesday afternoon, August 23, 2022.
Leia Alcantara, spokesperson of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency in Central Visayas (PDEA-7), identified the suspect as Renante Chiong, 50, an incumbent Barangay Mainit councilor.
The operation was a joint effort of the PDEA-7 and the Naga City Police Station.
According to Alcantara, the arrest of Chiong stemmed from pieces of information that they gathered from the community regarding the suspect’s illegal drug activities. This was later relayed to the Barangay Anti-Drug Abuse Council (BADAC) for proper action.
Alcantara said that Chiong allegedly holds pot sessions with minors inside his house.
In an interview with the media, Chiong said that he had no idea why the authorities searched his house for the presence of illegal drugs. However, Chiong admitted that he was using illegal drugs, but he was not a seller.
“Hindi ko rin alam kung bakit dahil ito na week, maraming mga tao na pumunta dito, mangigising tapos may dala yung iba. Ewan ko, kasi yung bahay ko walang padlock, open hanggang magdamag. Hindi ko alam ang nangyari, I don’t know bakit nandyan yan,” Chiong claimed.
Chiong said that he and his two siblings previously underwent rehabilitation for illegal drugs. Accordingly, his latest use was on Monday, August 22, 2022.
He also claimed that the nephew of the barangay’s village chief will visit him from time to time and allegedly bring ‘shabu’.
“Aaminin ko yung pagkatao ko, weaknesses ko yata yun, madaling ma tempt. Pero hindi ako manggamit kung walang [magbigay], parang may plano…Pinagsisihan ko? Kung bakit naglabas ako sa bunganga ko na i-ombudsman ko si kapitan,” Chiong said.
He also claimed that something happened between him and a minor who stayed in his house.
With this, aside from the possession of illegal drugs, the kagawad will also be charged for sexual abuse by the police for allegedly molesting a minor who was staying with him.
/bmjo
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