Court sends two pushers to jail

CEBU, Philippines - Two men were found guilty for selling illegal drugs in 2008, one was sentenced with life imprisonment and the other gets a maximum of 15 years in prison.

Regional Trial Court Branch 8 Judge Macaundas Hadjirasul found Dante de la Peña and Dennis Delima both guilty of violating the Republic Act 9165 otherwise known as the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act.

The court ruled that the evidence of the prosecution has sufficiently proven the guilt of the two accused.

The two were caught on June 2008 in barangay Sawang Calero, Cebu City during a buy-bust operation conducted by the intelligence officers of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency.

Intelligence 0fficer 1 Ferdinand Kintanar of PDEA-7 testified that he received information from a confidential informant on the rampant drug trade in barangay Sawang Calero.

Kintanar said they immediately conducted surveillance operations to confirm the report. According to Kintanar, they have proven that the information was accurate prompting them to inform their regional director.

A buy-bust operation was immediately hatched with him as a poseur buyer.

Kintanar said he gave to accused de la Peña the P300 marked money in exchange for one sachet of shabu.

The other accused, Delima, was said to be standing beside de la Peña the whole time and also showed Kintanar a sachet of shabu.

After the transaction was made, the rest of the team arrived upon signal of Kintanar and arrested the two.

Four sachets of shabu were said to be confiscated from de la Peña and sachets were also found in the possession of Delima.

De la Peña and Delima both denied the charges upon arraignment. The former said he was on his way to work when it rained prompting him take shelter. To his surprise, PDEA agents allegedly started frisking his body.

Delima for his part said that he was driving a “sidecar” when he was also approached and frisked by two people. He said that the drugs supposedly recovered from him were planted.

However, Judge Hadjirasul found the statements of the prosecution witnesses credible. With this, the court sentenced de la Peña to life imprisonment and ordered him to pay a fine of P500,000 while Delima was sentenced to suffer 12 to 15 years imprisonment and to pay P300,000 fine. – THE FREEMAN