Village chief, 2 others nabbed in Iloilo drug den

MANILA, Philippines — Anti-narcotics operatives arrested a village chief, his wife and a nephew during a raid on a suspected drug den in Iloilo, the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) said on Wednesday.

PDEA director general Arturo Cacdac Jr. identified the suspects as Roger Belarde, 48, incumbent chairman of Barangay Dugwakan Banate; his wife, Respe, 32, a suspected drug den maintainer; and Archie, 30. All suspects are residents of Dugwakan Banate, Iloilo.

Reports reaching PDEA central office in Quezon City showed that on September 5, operatives of PDEA Regional Office 6 implemented a search warrant issued by Judge Rogelio Amador of Regional Trial Court Branch 66 in Iloilo against Belarde.

Recovered inside Belarde's residence doubling as drug den were 12 plastic sachets of white crystalline substance suspected to be shabu, six 12 gauge shot gun live ammunition, two empty cigarette boxes, seven empty plastic sachets, four pairs of scissors, three cellular phones and P160 cash in various denominations.

The seized pieces of drug evidence were brought to the PDEA Regional Office 6 Laboratory for forensic examination.

Charges for violation of Section 6 (Maintenance of a Drug Den), Section 11 (Possession of Dangerous Drugs) in relation to Section 26 (Conspiracy), Article II, of Republic Act 9165, or The Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002 will be filed in court against Belarde couple while nephew will be charged for violation of Section 7 (Employees and Visitors of a Den).

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