‘Bodegera’ nabbed in Lapu-Lapu drug bust charged

Police Colonel Elmer Lim says charges of selling and possession of illegal drugs have already been filed against a 23-year-old woman from Cebu City who was arrested with illegal drugs during a buy-bust operation in Barangay Babag, Lapu-Lapu City last week. | Futch Anthony Inso

LAPU-LAPU CITY, Philippines — Lapu-Lapu City police have already filed charges against an alleged “bodegera” and an alleged “delivery woman” of illegal drugs, who was arrested during a last week’s buy-bust operation in Sitio Shooting Star, Barangay Babag this city.

Police Colonel Elmer Lim, city director of LCPO, said that charges of selling and possession of illegal drugs had already been filed today, Monday, March 20, 2023, against Chabelita Bantilan, a resident of Barangay Quiot Pardo in Cebu City.

Lim described Bantilan, 23, as an alleged “bodegera” or a person who received and stocked large amounts of illegal drugs or shabu to be distributed to several areas.

READ: Lapu-Lapu drug bust: ‘P5,000 delivery job’ lands 23-year-old woman in jail

Aside from that, Lim said that Bantilan was also an alleged “delivery woman,” who got paid to deliver the illegal drugs.

More than P14M drugs

Bantilan was caught in Barangay Babag, Lapu-Lapu City as she claimed to have been delivering illegal drugs that she claimed picked up from a person she met in a mall in Cebu City.

She was caught with more than P14 million worth of illegal drugs.

Bantilan earlier claimed that she got paid P5,000 for every kilo of illegal drugs that she could deliver.

READ: PDEA-7: 155 kilos of shabu seized in Cavite, Lapu-Lapu busts seen to reduce drug supply in CV

New Bilibid prison contact

Police Colonel Lim also said that during the initial investigation they found out that the suspect had a contact at the New Bilibid Prison.

“Ato nanang gisulti nga gikan sa Luzon, by land na siya. Mao na inig hagbong diri, and transshipment point ang atong area of responsibility,” he said.

(We already said that these (the drugs) came from Luzon, that came by land. So when the drugs are dropped, and the transshipment point is (in) our area of responsibility.)

“Bodegera man to siya, dayon kun naay mga instruction no siya maoy mag-hold sa illegal nga butang. Kung naay instruction nga i-deliver so mao to na intercept nato,” he said.

(She was a “bodegera”, and then if she has instructions, she will be the one to hold the illegal drugs. If there is an instruction to deliver (she will deliver), so that is where we intercepted her.)

Lim added that they are still identifying the contacts of the suspect and whom she would deliver the illegal drugs to.

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