‘Corinthian Boys’ busted

Four scions of prominent families in Metro Manila, dubbed as "Corinthian Boys," were arrested after yielding 472 tablets of the illegal drug Ecstacy during separate operations in the last two days.

Heavy rains brought about by tropical storm Chedeng did not prevent agents of the National Capital Region Police Office under Metro police chief Deputy Director General Reynaldo Velasco from conducting operations to neutralize the group.

Arrested for possession of Ecstasy tablets with a street value of P708,000 were Jerome Magno, 32, Paulo de Asis, 25, Robert Amado Ruiz, 28, and Ronald Vasquez, 25, all of Corinthian Gardens in Quezon City.

Velasco said the "Corinthian Boys" are believed behind the distribution of Ecstacy pills in popular nightclubs.

First to fall were Ruiz and de Asis. Ruiz was arrested after he allegedly handed over 72 Ecstacy pills to the men of Superintendent Nicolas Gregorio, head of the Police Anti-Crime Emergency Response (PACER) during a buy-bust operation in the vicinity of the Greenhills shopping center in San Juan last Monday.

Gregorio said they recovered the P230,000 marked money from Ruiz. Also arrested was De Asis, who accompanied Ruiz, during the transaction that took at about 11 p.m.

Velasco said De Asis and Ruiz then led Gregorio to Vasquez in Magallanes Subdivision in Makati City during follow-up operations three hours later.

Vasquez yielded some 200 Ecstacy pills in the right pocket of his pants, Gregorio said.

Vasquez then called up Magno informing him that he’ll pay for all the Ecstacy pills he loaned him.

Magno was arrested right after he emerged from his parents’ house in Corinthian Gardens. PACER agents confiscated another 200 pills from the glove compartment of his Starex van.

During tactical interrogation by Superintendent Miguel Laurel, NCRPO intelligence chief, Magno admitted being the source of Ecstacy pills being sold by the group.

Laurel said the group called themselves "Corinthian Boys" because they all live in the posh subdivision.

Magno claimed the pills came from the Netherlands. He did not reveal, however, how he managed to sneak the supply into the country.

The suspect told Laurel that most of their customers are movie personalities. He refused to name them.

Laurel said violation of the Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002 will be filed against the suspects in the respective courts, where they were arrested. The four suspects are being detained at the NCRPO headquarters at Camp Bagong Diwa in Taguig.