ILIGAN CITY — Authorities arrested five male suspects in a joint buy-bust operation launched by the Iligan City Police and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) on Monday in Purok 23, Sigayan, Barangay Mandulog.
The operation was led by OIC PMAJ Rustariel B. Murillo, along with intelligence operatives from the Iligan City Police Office, personnel from the Iligan City Mobile Force Company, and agents from PDEA. The arrested individuals, all of legal age and residents of Barangays Mandulog and Kalilangan, were caught either selling or using illegal drugs.
According to authorities, the primary suspect was caught selling a small heat-sealed transparent plastic sachet suspected to contain shabu. During the operation, four other men were also apprehended after being caught in the act of having a “pot session” inside a makeshift hut allegedly owned by the primary target.
Seized from the suspects were the following items:
- Five rectangular heat-sealed sachets believed to contain shabu
- Two unsealed large sachets with suspected traces of shabu
- Three small unsealed sachets with traces of shabu
- Four improvised aluminum foil tooters
- One digital weighing scale
- One disposable lighter
- One black coin purse and one black belt bag
- Five P100 bills used as marked buy-bust money
- Php 2,950 in cash suspected to be proceeds from drug sales
- One light-colored coin purse
- One pair of scissors
Authorities estimate the confiscated illegal drugs to weigh around 5 grams, with a street value of approximately Php 34,000.
The arrested suspects are now in police custody at Iligan City Police Station 1 pending the filing of appropriate charges.