2 dead in Batangas buy-bust operations

SAN PEDRO CITY – Two drug suspects were killed in separate buy-bust operations in Batangas province, the police said on Friday.

Batangas police director Sr. Supt. Edwin Quilates, in a report, said a drug suspect who went by the aliases “Lock” or “Steve” was killed in an operation around 9:45 p.m. Thursday in Barangay Banaba in Padre Garcia town.

He said the suspect sold a sachet of suspected shabu (crystal meth) to an undercover policeman but suddenly drew out a .357 caliber gun. The police was forced to shoot back in defense, Quilates said.

The suspect died while being taken to the Rosales General Hospital.

In Nasugbu town, Joel Galicha was killed after engaging law enforcers in a gunfight in Barangay Lumbangan around 8 p.m. Thursday.

Quilates, in the same report, said Galicha was included in the police’s list of suspected drug pushers in the town.

The police recovered a .38 caliber gun from Lumbangan.