MANILA, Philippines — Eight suspected gunrunners have been arrested by agents of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) in separate operations in Parañaque and Valenzuela.
Salvador Malbarosa, 54; Tim Tuates, 36; Michael Villacorta, 36; Septir Saj, 35; Brenda Garcia, 28, and Ma. Venus Garcia, 24, were apprehended in an entrapment operation in Barangay San Antonio, Valenzuela.
CIDG National Capital Region field office director Col. Randy Glenn Silvio said the suspects were nabbed after they accepted P5,000 in marked money from a police officer in exchange for two loose firearms.
The suspects allegedly yielded two .38-caliber handguns, P20,000 worth of shabu, a sachet of marijuana and assorted drug paraphernalia.
The CIDG said Malbarosa is an alleged member of a crime group involved in gun-for-hire activities in southern Metro Manila.
In Valenzuela, suspected gunrunners Ramon Christopher Lim, 37, and Edwin Torres, 30, were collared in a sting in Barangay Karuhatan on Wednesday.
Lim and Torres were placed under arrest after they reportedly accepted P5,000 from a policeman, who posed as a buyer of a .38-caliber handgun.
Police said the suspects also yielded at least 1.9 grams of shabu valued at P13,000.