OFF TO JAIL Some of the arrested drug suspects await transport to Camp Crame or Camp Karingal. INQSnap the logo for more
THE UGLY exterior must have served as a perfect cover, for inside there was a semblance of efficiency: a cashier area, a waiting section, and cubicles where clients can get high undisturbed.
Heavily armed policemen stormed a Quezon City neighborhood before dawn on Friday and found what they called a “24-hour” drug den in the slums of Barangay Culiat. One resident who reportedly drew a gun was killed and 10 others were arrested.
But the 5:10 a.m. operation that saw the raiders entering at least six houses did not yield any stash of “shabu” or other illegal drugs, officials said.
They instead seized several firearms, including an Intratec machine pistol from Emar Allahon Asuad, a 26-year-old native of Patikul, Sulu province, who was shot dead by the raiders when he tried to put up a fight.
Launched after two months of surveillance, the raid involved a composite team of about a hundred members of the Philippine National Police-Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG), the Highway Patrol Group, the Quezon City police, and the Armed Forces of the Philippines.
They came to serve search warrants issued by Judge Reynaldo Alhambra of the Manila Regional Trial Court Branch 53, targeting the homes of Culiat residents identified as Jamil Baja, Ibrahim Nabdul, Saud Kamil Mikalid, and Alimad Kausai Sarip.
LONE CASUALTY Neighbors view the body of Emar Allahon Asuad, 26, after the morning raid in Barangay Culiat.
The four were not only tagged as drug dealing suspects but were also being linked to gunrunning and contract killings, according to Supt. Danilo Macerin, CIDG regional director for Metro Manila.
It was not immediately clear who among them operated the drug den. They were also not among the 10 persons arrested.
Macerin said they received information about the presence of a drug den in the neighborhood two months ago. “It was during the raid that we confirmed its operations,” the official said in an interview.
The drug den was hidden in a dilapidated structure, but it had enough space for a “cashier area” where customers would buy shabu, a waiting area for those who wish to take the drug in the premises, and at least “seven cubicles” for a more private consumption, Macerin added.
The raiders entered five more homes about a hundred meters apart. In one house, they encountered Asuad as he was about to draw an Intratec machine pistol. He was shot before he could pull the trigger, Macerin said.
The arrested persons were identified as Ibrahim Abdul Mamood, Mark Galang, Demety Claude del Rosario, Susan Corbito, Monaisa Daud, Mona Malang, Junjubir Sawabi, Ismael Domangcag, Jacinto Paragan and Rhadzmar Chua. Only Paragan and Chua were apprehended at the drug den.
They remained in detention at Camp Karingal and Camp Crame at press time.
Confiscated during the raid was the Intratec machine pistol wielded by Asuad, two .45-cal. pistols, a .38-cal. revolver, an M16 rifle, an M16 carbine, and about 300 rounds of ammunition.
Macerin said the QCPD and the HPG also seized a total of 14 motorcycles from the raided homes. However, only pieces of drug paraphernalia were recovered at the drug den as the raiders did not find any drug or cash.