Iloilo City – The Police Regional Office 6 (Western Visayas) reported significant success in its anti-drug operations throughout August, resulting in the seizure of drugs valued at PHP72.8 million and the arrest of 307 suspects.
According to the Philippines News Agency, the operations spanned across the region, where police confiscated approximately 10,707 grams of shabu and 14 grams of marijuana over the course of 236 separate actions. Brig. Gen. Jack Wanky, PRO-6 Director, praised the efforts of the officers involved, emphasizing the importance of continuing their rigorous enforcement and investigative efforts to identify and apprehend associated suspects.
The largest single contribution came from the Regional Police Drug Enforcement Unit 6, which seized drugs worth about PHP42.9 million. Further, a detailed operation that started at 5:59 a.m. on September 5 led to the capture of 12 suspects and the recovery of 158 grams of suspected shabu, valued at PHP1.07 million.
Among those arrested, four were identified as high-value individuals, and eight were considered street-level suspects. The most significant bust occurred in Barangay Balabag, Pavia, Iloilo, where officers seized 68 grams of suspected shabu worth PHP462,000 from a suspect known as alias Raffy.
In a related incident in Barangay Our Lady of Fatima, Jaro, Iloilo City, five individuals were apprehended on Thursday evening, including a city hall employee. Reacting to the involvement of municipal staff in drug activities, Mayor Jerry Treñas announced the immediate dismissal of any job hire implicated in drug operations, alongside a mandatory drug test for all such employees, underscoring his administration’s zero-tolerance policy towards drug abuse and his support for the ongoing police campaign against illegal narcotics.