Three fall in dawn drug raid

Three people, one of them a 21-year-old woman who is reportedly six months pregnant, were arrested by the Fuente Police in simultaneous raids conducted in barangay Sambag Uno, Cebu City, yesterday dawn.

The suspects who are to be charged today before the City Prosecutors Office were identified as Jocelyn Bacho, of Private Road, sitio Riverside; Arestides Llamosa, 35, of sitio Laguna and Jennifer Dayono, 27, of Private Road, sitio San Roque, all in the said barangay.

Seized from the three were one medium-sized plastic and six small sachets containing suspected shabu, one hand-rolled marijuana stick, and five empty sachets from Bacho with residue of suspected shabu. But Bacho denied owning the evidences, claiming that even with her husband's meager earnings in driving a trisikad they could survive without engaging in the illegal drug trade.

Police found a large plastic, three medium-sized packs and eight small sachets containing suspected shabu at the house of Llamosa.

The raiding teams composed of Fuente policemen, Field Training Program trainees and barangay tanods, led by C/Insp. Henry Biñas, also found 27 empty sachets with traces of suspected shabu, 13 small rolled aluminum foils and paraphernalia for repacking shabu from Llamosa.

Llamosa said that he sometimes sells shabu in the street, but denied owning all of the evidences seized by the police in his house. He said that he could only afford to sell small quantities of shabu.

Police also seized one medium pack and three small sachets of suspected shabu from Dayono, and found empty packs with residues of suspected shabu at her residence. The items found include three live .45 cal. bullets.

Dayono also denied the allegations of the police, saying that the evidences were all planted. She claimed she had enemies among her neighbors who have connections with the police force and surmises that these people might have something to do with the raid.

The raiding teams were armed with search warrants against the three suspects issued by RTC Branch-7 Judge Simeon Dumdum, Jr.

Meanwhile, the Vice Control Section led by PO3 Jeffrey Larobis will file charges against a suspected drug pusher who managed to escape from them in a raid last Saturday evening in the interior portion of barangay Lorega San Miguel.

The suspect identified as Archie Opora, of legal age and a resident of said place, managed to escape from arresting policemen after two unidentified men lurking at a dark portion of the area grabbed him away from policemen who were about to handcuff him.

Earlier, a poseur-buyer used a P100 marked bill to buy one pack of shabu from the suspect. - Edwin Ian Melecio