BRIEFING. Philippine National Police chief Gen. Rodolfo Azurin Jr., Local Government Secretary Benjamin Abalos Jr., and Manila Mayor Honey Lacuna (from left) face the media in a press conference at Camp Crame, Quezon City on Sunday (Oct. 9, 2022). They narrated the details on the confiscation of PHP6.7 billion worth of shabu and the arrest of several suspects, including a cop. (Courtesy of PTV Facebook)
MANILA – Philippine National Police (PNP) anti-narcotics operatives on Saturday confiscated some 990 kilos of shabu worth about PHP6.7 billion in Tondo, Manila from a suspected drug pusher, leading to the arrest Sunday of a police officer who is involved in the illegal drug trade.
Brig. Gen. Narciso Domingo, PNP Drug Enforcement Group chief, said Ney Saligumba Atadero, 50, was nabbed in a buy-bust at around 4:45 p.m. Saturday in Barangay 252.
Atadero revealed during interrogation that more illegal drugs are inside a lending company office, Wealth and Personal Development Lending Inc., in Sta. Cruz.
“When we searched the area, we found documents implicating a certain Police Master Sgt. Rodolfo Mayo Jr. The documents revealed vital information as to the names of those involved in the transactions,” Domingo said in a press conference at Camp Crame, Quezon City on Sunday.
Police arrested Mayo in a follow-up operation early Sunday morning on Quezon Boulevard.
Mayo, the owner of the lending company, is assigned to the PNP Drug Enforcement Group's Special Operations Unit in the National Capital Region.
Recovered from Mayo's possession were two kilograms of shabu worth PHP13.6 million, various identification cards, a sports utility vehicle, and service firearm.
Juden Francisco, another subject of various intelligence operations on illegal drugs, was also nabbed in Pasig City using the same information obtained from the lending firm.
Subsequent operations netted more suspects -- Lyndon Dionson, Kenneth Dionson, Dindo Chococo, Ritzel Carballo, Bernardo Corridor, Rodolfo Detulla, and Virgilio Bacuz.
“We are also investigating if there are other police officers involved in this operation by Master Sgt. Mayo. If we find out that he has some cohorts, then we will arrest and charge them because as I said before, our illegal drugs campaign will be relentless and will run after anybody,” PNP chief Gen. Rodolfo Azurin Jr. said. (PNA)
