Cousins caught with P3.2M marijuana in Baguio

BAGUIO CITY – Agents of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency-Cordillera (PDEA) seized more than P3.2 million worth of marijuana blocks about to be shipped to the illicit market.

At least 47 kilos of marijuana were seized from a repeat offender and his cohort-cousin during a buy-bust operation here Tuesday, the PDEA said.

Ten large blocks of dried fruiting tops and nine oval or tubular packs of dried stalks wrapped and bound in a tan-colored packaging tape and placed in a sack bag and traveling bag were supposed to be shipped to the lowlands by cousins Kenneth Lagadeo, 28 and Melchor Lagadeo, 25.

The contraband was valued at P3,208,000.00.

PDEA-Cordillera spokesperson Emily Fama said that Kenneth is a repeat drug law violator. During the arrest, Lagadeo identified himself as Ardie Ramos.

The cousins, who are natives of a known lair if marijuana cultivators in Badeo, Kibungan, Benguet, were collared at around 4 a.m. in Barangay San Roque, where they sold the marijuana bricks to an undercover PDEA agent.

PDEA added that Kenneth had been arrested on Apr. 5, 2009 along with a certain Jerry Adiwang with 2,909.90 grams of dried marijuana fruiting tops in bricks. The duo, however, was acquitted two years after and eventually released.

Satur Dayao, a cousin of Kenneth and Melchor, had been convicted and sentenced to a life term on Dec. 12, 2011 for the same offense.

Meanwhile, anti-narcotics agents also busted two marijuana suppliers from Bakun town in Benguet.

Nabbed were Olibrum Canias, 30 and J-pee Pacuz, 19, residents of Sitio Barbarit, Barangay Bagu in Bakun.

They were caught selling four huge blocks of marijuana bricks weighing 17,293 grams.