Police shot dead a live-in partner of a drug suspect and arrested three others during a drug operation in Barangay Umapad, Mandaue City at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday.
Rufino Panis, 45, a resident of Purok Star Apple in Barangay Umapad died at the Mandaue City Hospital after sustaining two gunshot wounds in the body.
Panis is the live-in partner of Marianita Hadraque, 45, who is one of the subjects of the warrants of arrest that operatives from the Mandaue City Police Office City Intelligence Branch (CIB) were trying to serve on Saturday afternoon.
PSupt. Bernouli Abalos, CIB chief led the two teams serving the search warrants issued by Judge Teresita Galanida of Mandaue RTC Branch 56 for Hadraque and Eduardo Baclohan Jr., 35, both residents of Barangay Umapad.
During the simultaneous serving of the search warrant, Panis, prevented police from entering and pulled out a gun prompting police to shoot him. He was rushed to the hospital where he died few minutes later.
Found from Hadraque’s residence were a .38 revolver, six small sachets of suspected shabu, weighing scale, empty plastics for repacking shabu, forceps and drug paraphernalia.
Hadraque’s three children were brought to the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) for custody.
Meanwhile, at the residence of Baclohan, police found six small plastic sachet of suspected shabu, empty plastics for repacking shabu and drug paraphernalia.
Baclohan surrendered last Tuesday to Police Station 5 when compelled by her mother as he set to wed on November but when CIB personnel conducted a test buy on Friday night against Baclohan, he was still selling shabu, thus a search warrant was issued and served.
A 23-year old man named Jevrel Navaro, who was talking with Baclohan was also arrested.
Two sachets of suspected shabu were found in Navaro’s possession. He admitted to using drugs but denied selling them.