P1.4M worth of illegal drugs seized in Cotabato City and Maguindanao

COTABATO CITY – Anti-narcotics agents in the Bangsamoro arrested seven people, including a couple, in separate anti-drug raids that yielded some P1.4 million worth of suspected meth here and in Maguindanao province, officials said.

Juvenal Azurin, regional director of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Authority (PDEA) in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), said aside from the 200 grams of suspected shabu valued at an estimated P1.36 million, the operations carried out on Friday and Saturday also yielded a .22-caliber Glock automatic pistol, ammunition, and the P400,000 boodle money.

Anthony Naive, head of PDEA-Maguindanao, identified the arrested couple as Kal Zainal and his wife Muslima, both residents of Datu Piang, Maguindanao. They were arrested along Datu Piang Road in Barangay Kangguan, Datu Piang town.

“We have been trailing them in the past three weeks,” Naive said.

PDEA agents backed the police and the Philippine Marines also arrested five more persons and seized 10 grams more of suspected shabu (crystal meth) in Barangay Mother Poblacion at 3 p.m. Friday. Among other items confiscated during the raid here were boodle money, mobile phone, identification cards from the Moro Islamic Liberation Front and other drug paraphernalia.

Charges for violation of Republic Act 9165 (Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002) are being prepared against all the suspects.