Not just in Munti: Raids in Cebu prisons yield P1M cash, drugs

CEBU CITY—At least P1 million in cash as well as “shabu” (methamphetamine) and ampules of nubain, packs of coin and cellular phones were just among the contrabands seized from two jail facilities in Cebu during simultaneous raids early Saturday.

Clad in full battle gear and carrying high-powered firearms, about 300 policemen raided the male dormitories of the Cebu City Jail and the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center (CPDRC)—both located in the hilly barangay (village) of Kalunasan, Cebu City at 1:25 a.m.

Detainees were asked to remove their clothes and stay in one corner as operatives of the Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) searched the belongings and rooms of the two jail facilities one by one.

As of 6 a.m., at least P1 million cash was recovered from the Cebu City Jail, said Senior Supt. Rey Lyndon Lawas, PRO-7 deputy director for operations.

Police were still conducting an inventory of the seized items that included nubain, a regulated painkiller; bladed weapons, flat screen televisions, pairs of rubber shoes, personal appliances and several drug paraphernalia.

Many of the contraband were recovered from the Cebu City Jail.

There was no need to secure a search warrant from the court since the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology as well as Cebu Gov. Hilario Davide gave the police the permission to search the province and city jail, said Chief Supt. Noli Taliño, director of the Police Regional Office in Central Visayas (PRO-7).

Taliño said PRO-7 on Friday received an information about the illegal drug operations inside the Cebu City Jail.

The former Special Action Force chief immediately hatched to conduct a “Greyhound Operation” inside the Cebu City Jail as well as the nearby the CPDRC.

The police force was augmented by agents of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) and BJMP officers.

Three K9 dogs from PDEA and the Philippine Coast Guard helped in searching the contraband.

“Based on the information we received, the jails have become a market for illegal drugs. Drug users come here as if they would visit prisoners but in reality they buy and use drugs. They do it behind bars because they are afraid of the Oplan Tokhang being conducted by the police outside the jail,” said Taliño.

He said they were investigating how the illegal drugs and other contraband slip past the jail guards at the entrance gates.

Charges will be filed against the detainees from whom the contraband were seized.

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