A member of a gang notorious for peddling illegal drugs in Barangay Lower Bicutan, Taguig City, was killed by the police in a shootout on Sunday, according to a report to the Southern Police District.
The suspect, known only as “Papaleps” and identified by authorities as a member of the Bayawak drug syndicate, was shot dead by operatives of the Taguig City police on C6 Road. His companion, known only as “Jokno,” managed to escape.
According to Taguig police chief, Senior Supt. Alexander Santos, his men were conducting simultaneous anticriminality operations on Sunday around 1 a.m. when they chanced upon “a group drinking on the side of the road so they approached them.”
Two men in the group, however, later identified as Papaleps and Jokno, tried to evade the police team.
Papaleps drew a .45-caliber pistol and fired at them, leading to a shootout which left him dead.
Santos said intelligence reports had previously identified the two as members of the group behind the illegal drug trade in Lower Bicutan and adjacent barangays.