DRUG BUST. Ronald Gabunada (second from left), 40, and his nephew Jestoni Rom, 32, (third from left) cover their faces as an agent of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA)-Central Visayas conducts an on-site chain of custody procedure on the confiscated "shabu" worth over PHP2 million. PDEA-7 spokesperson Leia Alcantara on Wednesday (Feb. 7, 2024) said the two were arrested during a sting operation Tuesday in the upland village of Malubog, Cebu City. (Photo courtesy of PDEA-7)
CEBU CITY – Two drug suspects were arrested after yielding over PHP2 million worth of suspected shabu during a sting operation in this city’s upland village of Malubog, the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA)-Central Visayas said Wednesday.
PDEA agents, along with naval soldiers and operatives of Cebu City police station 4, arrested Ronald Gabunada, 40, and his nephew, Jestoni Rom, 32, both residents of Barangay Taptap, Tuesday night.
Authorities confiscated 49 packs of suspected shabu weighing around 300 grams with an estimated street value of PHP2.04 million from the two suspects, PDEA-7 spokesperson Leia Alcantara said in a statement.
She said the suspects also yielded a mobile phone and the motorcycle they were riding when the police cornered them during the operation.
A confidential informant reported to PDEA the alleged illicit activities of Gabunada in the mountain barangays of Cebu City and could dispose of around half a kilo of shabu per week, prompting the PDEA-7 to place him under case build-up and surveillance.
Rom, on the other hand, had a previous drug case. He was arrested in April 2020 and was out on bail.
The duo is now facing drug charges in court. (PNA)
