ISABELA CITY, Basilan — An alleged high-value drug personality was arrested after authorities seized approximately 100 grams of suspected shabu with a reported standard drug value of ₱680,000 during a buy-bust operation in Isabela City on Tuesday morning, September 16.
The operation was carried out at around 9:55 a.m. along Tupay Street in Purok 3, Barangay Tabuk, according to an initial operational report.
The operation was led by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency-Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (PDEA-BARMM) Basilan Provincial Office, with support from the PDEA Regional Office IX-Isabela City Office and the Isabela City Police Station.
Authorities identified the arrested suspect as Ibrahim Daud Malabao, 36, a resident of Barangay Timpul, Isabela City. PDEA classified Malabao as a high-value target (HVT).
During the operation, authorities reportedly recovered a brown checkered paper bag containing two heat-sealed transparent plastic sachets filled with a white crystalline substance believed to be methamphetamine hydrochloride, commonly known as shabu.
The suspected illegal drugs had an estimated combined weight of more or less 100 grams, based on the initial report.
Authorities placed the reported street value at approximately ₱200,000, while the standard drug value was listed at ₱680,000 in the operational report. The difference reflects the separate valuation figures cited by authorities and should not be interpreted as separate quantities of drugs.
Aside from the suspected shabu, operatives also recovered a Samsung mobile phone and a Honda XRM motorcycle bearing plate number JA87924.
The operation also involved marked buy-bust money consisting of one genuine ₱1,000 bill placed on top of bundles of photocopied ₱1,000 bills, which were intended to represent the remaining amount of the reported ₱200,000 transaction.
Authorities said no firearm was recovered during the operation.
The initial report also identified an individual using the alias “Al Sabar Abdullah Mansul” as another personality linked to the operation. The individual, however, remains at large, according to authorities.
Malabao is expected to face a complaint for alleged violation of Section 5 of Republic Act No. 9165, or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002, which covers the illegal sale, trading, administration, delivery, distribution and transportation of dangerous drugs, subject to the filing of the appropriate complaint and the determination of the proper authorities.
The case remains subject to the required investigation, evidence examination and legal proceedings. The seized substance will undergo the appropriate laboratory examination and documentation as part of the case-building process.
PDEA-BARMM Basilan Provincial Office led the operation, with representatives from the media and an elected barangay official present as witnesses during the police and evidence-handling procedures.
Authorities reported that all operating personnel were safe and accounted for following the operation.
The arrest and seizure are part of continuing anti-illegal drug operations in Basilan and Isabela City. The filing of charges and the subsequent court proceedings will determine the legal outcome of the case.