CABANATUAN CITY, Nueva Ecija—Two suspected drug personalities were killed while three others were arrested in separate anti-illegal drugs operations in the province on Friday.
Supt. Ponciano Zafra, city police chief, on Saturday said that Crisanto Bondoc, 44, a widower from Purok 1, San Josef Norte, this city; and Federico Pineda, 50, married of Barangay Bangad here, succumbed to gunshot wounds after they allegedly engaged in a firefight with policemen during separate buy-bust operations conducted by the Cabanatuan City police and Peñaranda police stations , respectively.
Zafra said Bondoc fired at the undercover operatives, prompting the lawmen to retaliate.
Investigators recovered from Bondoc a coin purse with nine sachets of shabu; two mobile phones; a cal. 38 revolver and fired bullets and the PHP500 marked money.
Pineda, on the other hand, met with undercover policemen in Barangay Tabuating, San Leonardo town at around 11:30 a.m. to sell drugs. But after the exchange of a sachet of shabu and PHP500 marked money, he sensed he was dealing with policemen, drew his gun and fired at the policemen, forcing the latter to fire back, fatally hitting the suspect, Chief Inspector Ranny Casilla, Peñaranda police chief, said.
Lawmen recovered from the suspect three plastic sachets containing shabu, 11 plastic sachets of marijuana tops; a cal. 38 revolver; and other drug paraphernalia; buy-bust money; a mobile phone; and a single motorcycle without license plate.
Those arrested in separate operations were identified as Gerry Galdones, who yielded two plastic sachets of shabu in a buy-bust operation in the Science City of Muñoz; Noel Eustaquio, 45, a jobless resident of Purok 3, Barangay Bertese, Quezon town , who was caught in possession of three sachets of shabu in the implementation of a search warrant ; and Emerson Griño, 27, of Barangay San Pedro, Gen. Tinio town, who reportedly yielded two sachets of shabu in a buy-bust operation. (PNA)
