Marawi City, Lanao del Sur – Authorities arrested a 64-year-old man in a major anti-drug operation on May 31, 2025, that led to the confiscation of approximately one kilogram of suspected shabu valued at Php6.8 million.
The suspect, a resident of Barangay Dilausan in Poona Bayabao, Lanao del Sur, was apprehended in a buy-bust operation in Barangay Marawi Poblacion. The operation was carried out by joint forces of the Provincial Drug Enforcement Unit (PDEU) and several police units including the Lanao del Sur Provincial Police Office (LDSPPO), the Provincial Special Operations Group (PSOG), the 1403rd Regional Mobile Force Company of the Regional Mobile Force Battalion 14A, PDEU of Maguindanao del Norte Police Provincial Office, the Regional Drug Enforcement Unit (RDEU) of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region, the Provincial Intelligence Unit (PIU), and the City Drug Enforcement Unit (CDEU) of the Marawi City Police Station.
Recovered during the operation were:
- One heat-sealed transparent plastic bag containing a white crystalline substance suspected to be shabu, weighing about one kilogram and concealed in a violet tea bag, estimated to be worth Php6.8 million;
- One genuine Php1,000 bill used as marked money;
- Several bundles of photocopied Php1,000 bills totaling Php1 million, placed in a white eco bag;
- Two identification cards.
The suspect was read his constitutional rights in a language he understood and was immediately brought to the Marawi City Police Station for documentation and filing of charges under Republic Act No. 9165, or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.
Police Brigadier General Romeo J. Macapaz, Regional Director of the Police Regional Office in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region (PRO BAR), commended the law enforcement units involved in the successful operation.
“The PNP PRO BAR will not stop in its efforts to eradicate the drug menace in our region. This success is the result of persistent and thorough intelligence gathering and the collaboration of various police units. Each operation aims to protect our communities from the dangers of illegal drugs,” Macapaz said.
The arrest marks another significant breakthrough in the government’s continuing campaign against illegal drugs in the region.