Ex-convict falls in buy-bust with P1.18M shabu

CEBU, Philippines — A newly released convicted felon yielded about 100 grams of shabu during a buy-bust operation Wednesday at Barangay Cadawinonan in Dumaguete City, conducted by the Regional Special Operations Group (RSOG) and the City Drug Enforcement Unit (CDEU), headed by Senior Inspector Vann Joel Tingson.

RSOG team leader Chief Insp. Abel Laborte identified the suspect as Roger Lapa Sol, 43-year-old resident of Ayungon town in Negros Oriental, who transacted with a police poseur buyer near the private cemetery in Cadawinonan.

Seized from the suspect’s possession were 20 “bultos” of shabu, worth an estimated Dangerous Drugs Board’s value of P1.18 million, and the marked money used in the buy-bust.

Laborte said the suspect was under surveillance after his release from the medium security compound in Muntinlupa in December last year, due to reports that he could be one of the couriers of drug shipment from the National Penitentiary.

Sol was however very cooperative, and revealed to the police that the drug shipment was from Bohol, with links in Muntinlupa, said Laborte.

Further investigation disclosed that Sol is originally from Barangay Looc in Dumaguete, then moved to Amlan town and finally in Ayungon, Negros Oriental where he established an ukay-ukay business together with his live-in partner.

Tingson, for his part, said the arrest of Sol was a result of enhanced inter-operability of different law enforcement units in the campaign against illegal drugs.

One of the strategies in the drive is the “pasa-bilis” scheme through Viber where anybody in the community can send information on actual time for immediate police response.

Tingson added that Sol was included in the CDEU watchlist but they only needed an informant to make a transaction. Fortunately, the RSOG provided one and this resulted in the successful buy-bust last Wednesday afternoon. (FREEMAN)