Police authorities in Bohol province seized a total of P22.8 million worth of alleged shabu in separate operations, officials said.
In Dauis town, police arrested Vicente Sarno, 41, alias “Inting,” a resident of Purok 1, Barangay Totolan, and seized 19 large packs of shabu weighing 1.35 kilograms with an estimated value of P9.18 million, according to reports.
Sarno, a native of Barangay Bahi, Alburquerque, Bohol, was arrested in a buy-bust operation conducted by the Provincial Drug Enforcement Unit.
In Tubigon town, police recovered around two kilograms of shabu with an estimated value of P13.6 million during an operation at 8 a.m. in Barangay Guiwanon.
The suspect, Danilo Lao Refulle Jr., 25, was considered by police as a regional priority high-value individual.
Refulle was arrested after a poseur buyer transacted with him, leading to the recovery of the alleged shabu.
In Tagbilaran City, the City Drug Enforcement Team seized alleged shabu worth P1 million following a drug buy bust operation at Barangay Dao.
The suspect, Michael Denulan, a resident of Barangay Taloto and a native of Ubay town, was arrested after a poseur buyer transacted with him.
Seized from Denulan were three packets containing alleged shabu with a total weight of 150 grams.
In another operation in Dauis town, police arrested Romeo Antecamara Jr., 40, a resident of Barangay Tabalong, and seized six packets containing alleged shabu with a total value of P47,600.
Antecamara was arrested in a buy-bust operation conducted by the Provincial Drug Enforcement Unit.
The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) also arrested Ronaldo Capuno, 40, the alleged husband of a policewoman from Loay town, in a buy bust operation at Barangay Bool, Tagbilaran City.
Seized from Capuno were packets of alleged shabu with a total weight of 20 grams and valued at P136,000.
Capuno, a resident of Barangay Bonbon, Loay, was listed as a regional target prior to his arrest on November 8.
Meanwhile, the Bohol Police Provincial Office denied allegations of drug recycling, saying the insinuations are baseless and there was no single incident where authorities are engaged in drug recycling.
BPPO spokesman Lt. Col. Norman Nuez said the police organization will impose sanctions on policemen involved in alleged drug recycling.
“The allegations of drug recycling are unfounded and without basis,” Nuez said. “We are committed to preserving the integrity of the police organization and will remain truthful to our mission to serve and protect.”
The police, he said, remain committed to curb the drug problem by using various strategies including demand and supply reduction.
The police, in coordination with the PDEA, have been working to destroy the seized drugs cleared by the courts for destruction, Nuez said.
The arrests and seizures are part of the police’s efforts to curb the drug problem in the province, he noted.
The operations were conducted in line with the police’s campaign against illegal drugs, which has been intensified since the assumption of the new Bohol provincial director, Col. Arnel Banzon, according to Nuez.