Woman turns over P1.7M shabu to cops

CEBU, Philippines - A shipment of shabu, worth an estimated P1.7 million, from a certain "Gabriel" in the Bilibid Prisons in Muntinlupa City could have been distributed and sold in the streets of Dumaguete City had it reached the supposed consignee here, known only as "Sam."

An unidentified man got the shipment from "Gabriel" but, due to the absence of the consignee, left this instead to a woman, whose identity was kept under wraps by the police for security reasons.

The woman, who apparently got worried about having shabu in her possession, contacted instead Senior Superintendent Leopoldo Cabanag, who she knew being the Dumaguete police chief years ago.

Cabanag, now the commander of the Regional Public Safety Batallion of the Police Regional Office-18 (Negros Island Region), in turn referred her to the Bais City Police Station, through Inspector Bubuli, and to the Dumaguete City police chief, Superintendent Jovito Atanacio.

The woman then turned over the shabu shipment to Atanacio, in coordination with the Provincial Anti-Illegal Drugs Special Operations Group (PAIDSOTG) and the Negros Oriental Provincial Police Office (NORPPO).

The woman told local reporters she made sure that the two big bultos of shabu, which fell into her possession, will not go to the wrong hands, and that she trusted only Cabanag and Atanacio, with Inspector Sanfred Germodo, chief operations officer of the Dumaguete Police.

Atanacio said the voluntary turnover was the woman's gesture of goodwill to do her share in the campaign against illegal drugs in the city, even if her safety was at stake.

The two bultos of shabu, weighing 155 grams and valued at about P1.7 million, will be destroyed immediately before the public after subjecting these to tests at the Dumaguete police crime lab, said Atanacio.

Meanwhile, the woman was quoted as telling Atanacio that the shipment was half a kilo of shabu, but only two bultos were left to her by the unidentified man. — (FREEMAN)