Elusive shabu peddler nabbed in PDEA-12 operation

COTABATO CITY — An elusive shabu and marijuana dealer, who had evaded five previous entrapment attempts, was finally caught by anti-narcotics agents in Koronadal City on Friday, January 9, in an operation aided by his own relatives.

Local officials in Koronadal City and nearby towns in South Cotabato told reporters on Monday, January 12, that the 38-year-old male suspect, now in detention, had been selling shabu and marijuana in remote barangays.

Charlene Magdurulang, director of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency 12, said the suspect was immediately arrested after selling a sachet of shabu to agents during a trade-off along Abrenica Street in Barangay GPS, Koronadal City.

The entrapment operation that led to the suspect’s arrest, supported by the Police Regional Office 12, was based on reports from his close relatives and barangay officials in Koronadal City, the provincial capital of South Cotabato.

Local executives said he had evaded five previous attempts by different police units to entrap him in various locations across Koronadal City and South Cotabato over the past 12 months.

Magdurulang expressed gratitude to barangay and city officials, as well as confidential informants, who helped agents plan the operation. The suspect is now in custody, awaiting prosecution for violations of the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.