Anti-drugs agents nab suspected shabu peddler in Tawi-Tawi

ZAMBOANGA CITY – Anti-illegal drugs agents, backed by policemen, arrested a 40-year-old man and seized some P1.5-million worth of suspected shabu during a buy-bust operation in Bongao, Tawi-Tawi, the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) in Western Mindanao said Tuesday.

Lyndon Aspacio, the PDEA Western Mindanao chief, said suspect Badang Awal Abdul, a resident of Sitio Lungan Gihtung in Barangay Lagasan, yielded some 300 grams of the white crystalline substance when arrested by elements of PDEA Tawi-Tawi provincial office.

During the arrest operation on Monday, PDEA agents were assisted by the Provincial Public Safety Command, the 51st Special Action Force (SAF), and the Bongao Municipal Police Station.

The operatives also recovered from the suspect the P3,000 marked money used by the anti-drug agents during the buy-bust operation, Aspacio said.

Abdul was being detained at the Bongao police station and had already been charged for violation of Section 5 (Selling of Illegal Drugs) and Section 11 (Possession of Illegal Drugs) of RA 9165, otherwise known as the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002. /jpv