Seven individuals were arrested after operatives of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) raided a suspected drug den in Barangay Lourdes, Lubao, Pampanga. Meanwhile, a man was arrested after being found in possession of marijuana and shabu in La Union.

According to PDEA Region III, the operation was conducted at around 3:00 p.m. on February 4, following a tip that the house was being used for illegal drug activities. Authorities arrested a 33-year-old suspect identified as alias “Win-Win” along with six companions. Seized from them were five sachets of shabu weighing a total of 12 grams, with an estimated value of more than ₱81,000.

Authorities in La Union also arrested a 27-year-old man known as alias “Joshua” in a buy-bust operation conducted by PDEA Region I and the PNP in Barangay Sinapangan, San Juan, on February 3. Confiscated from the suspect were packaged marijuana kush and suspected liquid tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) worth nearly ₱80,000.

In another operation, the PDEA and the Bureau of Customs intercepted 10 plastic bags of high-grade marijuana at the Port of Clark. The shipment, which arrived from France on January 26, was declared as steel fasteners and brackets. However, a K-9 inspection yielded positive results for illegal drugs. The seized marijuana weighed 4.6 kilograms and was valued at nearly ₱7 million.

All confiscated drugs have been turned over to the PDEA for further investigation. Those arrested will face charges for violating Republic Act 9165, or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002, as authorities continue to identify those behind the illegal operations.

~ Charles Limon