SEIZED. The 20 packs of shabu seized by anti-narcotics agents from a certain 'Dhats' who managed to escape during a drug buy-bust in Sultan Mastura, Maguindanao del Norte, on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024. The suspect left behind some PHP6.8 million worth of shabu placed inside a sling bag. (Photo courtesy of PDEA-BARMM)
COTABATO CITY – Authorities seized some PHP6.8 million worth of shabu abandoned by a drug personality in Sultan Mastura town, Maguindanao del Norte on Tuesday afternoon.
Director Gil Cesario Castro of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency-Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (PDEA-BARMM) said the supposed drug peddler, identified only as a certain “Dhats”, managed to evade arrest during the 1 p.m. operation.
"Upon the consummation of the transaction, the suspect sensed the presence of the apprehending team and ran towards the nearby houses," he said in a report on Wednesday,
Backing the PDEA-BARMM in the operation along the highway in Barangay Tapayan were operatives of the Philippine Marines and Maguindanao provincial police.
"A pursuit operation is still ongoing against the suspect,” Castro said.
Seized during the operation were 20 plastic sachets of shabu, weighing about 1,000 grams with a street value of PHP6.8 million and a sling bag that contained the illegal substance.
Castro said cases for violation of RA 9165, or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002, will be filed against the suspect.
The recovery of illegal drugs came four days after PDEA-BARMM agents arrested a police officer and a woman and seized over PHP4 million worth of shabu in the city. (PNA)
