6 more dead in Laguna anti-drugs operations

SAN PEDRO CITY – The series of anti-drug and crime police operations continued in Laguna province, with six more suspects dead after resisting arrests.

In Calamba City, two suspected thieves, whom the police have not yet identified, were killed in a shootout in Barangay (village) Makiling, around 4 a.m. Saturday.

City police chief Supt. Harold Depositar said in a message that Fidel Jimenez, flagged down a police team on patrol after he was allegedly robbed by the suspects onboard a motorcycle.

The police chased the suspects but they instead opened fire, forcing law enforcers to retaliate. Both were hit and died while being taken to the Jose P. Rizal hospital.

In this city, the police killed Fernando Custodio in a buy-bust operation around 11:55 p.m. Friday in Barangay San Antonio.

Aside from being in the police watchlist for drug personalities, Custodio was also allegedly a member of the Ricky “Chong” Camerino drug and gun-for-hire group responsible for the killings of officials of the Bureau of Corrections in recent months in the adjacent Muntinlupa City, said San Pedro police chief Supt. Giovannie Martinez.

Martinez said Custodio opened fire during the buy-bust. The police recovered a .45-caliber gun and a sachet of suspected “shabu” (crystal meth).

The rest of the slain suspects were allegedly involved in the illegal drugs trade, Laguna police director Sr. Supt. Eleazar Matta said in a series of messages.

They were identified as an alias “Daniel,” who was killed in a shootout around 11 p.m. Friday in Barangay Buboy, Nagcarlan; Garry Ebit in a buy-bust around 11 p.m. Friday in Barangay Biñan, Pagsanjan; and Donald Royeras, alias “Mcdo,” in Barangay Sto. Niño, Biñan City.

The police recovered a sachet of suspected shabu each from Daniel and Royeras and 11 sachets from Ebit.

Seven other suspects were earlier killed in separate operations in Laguna since Thursday.