2 in illegal dog trade held by cops
CAMP PACIANO RIZAL, Laguna—Police on Friday arrested two persons allegedly involved in the illegal dog meat trade, which has remained rampant in northern Luzon provinces.
Supt. Chito Bersaluna, San Pedro police chief, in a phone interview said police on patrol chanced upon the suspects’ van suspiciously parked in Barangay Landayan at around 2 a.m.
When the vehicle was inspected, police found several dogs in small, improvised cages inside the van.
Police counted 68 dogs, 49 of which, however, were already dead.
“You’d pity the animals. Their snouts were tied with plastic straw and some had mange,” Bersaluna said.
Police arrested the van’s driver, Ronette Medina, 35, and his companion, identified through his driver’s license as Benajmin Abante, 25, both residents of Barangay San Roque, also in San Pedro.
“The driver said they got the dogs from neighboring areas and they were supposed to take them to Baguio City,” Bersaluna said.
He said upon the arrest, police recognized Abante, whose real identity is still being investigated, as the same person arrested in February last year for the same offense.
