Lucena cops intensify war vs big-time marijuana pushers

LUCENA CITY, Quezon, Philippines — With the supply of “shabu” or crystal meth drying up, authorities are now targeting big-time traffickers of marijuana or “weed” in this city.

Three more suspected peddlers of marijuana were arrested in two separate buy-bust operations on Friday, police said.

Antidrug operatives collared Exequile Castro, 23, after he sold P500 worth of dried marijuana leaves to a police agent posing as buyer inside a subdivision in Barangay Gulang-Gulang around 6:10 p.m., Lt. Col. Romulo Albacea, Lucena police chief, said in a report.

The suspect, tagged by the police as a big-time drug pusher, yielded seven sachets containing 155 grams of weed worth P55,880.

Earlier, policemen busted Melvin de Veluz, 19, and Luke Adrian Conti, 19, in another drug sting in Barangay Mayao Kanluran around 1:40 p.m. The duo yielded 142 grams of marijuana in 51 plastic sachets worth P51,120.

On Thursday, police nabbed Randel Marciano, 26, in another barangay in the city. Seized from him were 153 grams of marijuana worth P55,000.

Last week, another major supplier of weed, Jhun Odiver, 29, also fell. He yielded 775.7 grams of weed in 25 plastic sachets worth P93,000.

Intelligence report

Albacea said the series of arrests of weed pushers confirm the intelligence report that there is now a scarcity of shabu in the market due to the relentless arrest of meth peddlers.

“Shabu users are now shifting to weed to satisfy their ‘trips,’” Albacea explained.

He said weed pushers cater to students, out-of-school youths and young professionals.