Councilor faces drug, gun raps

OZAMIZ CITY—Police have filed charges against a municipal councilor belonging to a powerful political family in Misamis Occidental province for possession of illegal drugs and firearms.

Senior Supt. Edgar Daniel, provincial police director, said the complaint against Agapito “Jojo” Yap III, a councilor of Baliangao town, were on top of that he is facing in Dipolog City where he was arrested in a buy-bust operation on Sept. 14.

On Sept. 15, hours after his arrest, antinarcotics agents and police led by Supt. John Encinareal raided Yap’s house in Barangay Punta Miray to enforce two search warrants issued by a regional trial court in Oroquieta City—one for possible violation of the firearms law and the other for alleged possession of illegal drugs.

Seized from the house were a fragmentation grenade, a pack of crystalline substance believed to be “shabu” or methamphetamines, and shabu paraphernalia.

Yap, also known as Ebong, who was No. 1 on the police watch list, is currently village chair of Punta Miray. His family has controlled political power in the town since 1946. The current mayor, Agne Yap Sr., is his uncle.

Two persons, who were also on the watch list and known to be personal escorts of Yap, were inside the house when the policemen came. They were identified as Rechie Gecain and Randy Cayud-ong Amores.

Amores evaded arrest but Gecain was caught after a chase toward his rented house. Recovered from him was a .45 cal. pistol and a magazine loaded with 13 bullets.  Ryan D. Rosauro, Inquirer Mindanao