P3.4-million shabu seized in Manila sting

MANILA, Philippines — A suspected drug dealer was arrested and P3.4 million worth of methamphetamine hydrochloride or shabu were confiscated during a sting by agents of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) in Malate, Manila on Wednesday.

Salahudin Kendayo was arrested at the roof deck of a shopping mall along Padre Faura street at around 12:30 p.m. after he sold shabu to an undercover operative for P1.5 million, PDEA Special Enforcement Service (SES) director Levi Ortiz said.

Around 500 grams of shabu placed in five sachets were seized from him.

The suspect, a resident of Baseco Compound, is a second year college student.

Records show he was arrested by police in Tondo for possession of narcotics but was released in May after he posted bail.

The suspect claimed he was unaware he was carrying illegal drugs, saying a person he refused to identify instructed him to transport the contraband in exchange for P5,000.

In Marikina, four persons were arrested for drug-related offenses on Wednesday.

Jonathan Paul Espina, 35, and Jovin Fernandez, 26, were allegedly caught using shabu along Rose street in Barangay Malanday at around 6 p.m. A sachet of shabu, a piece of aluminum foil with traces of shabu and a lighter were seized from them.

Resty Dialino, 34, and a girl were arrested in a sting in Barangay Tumana. Dialino yielded 11 sachets of shabu, P500 marked money and a coin purse.