Couple allegedly engaged in drugs, extortion arrested

CEBU, Philippines - A couple allegedly engaged in the sale of illegal drugs and extortion was arrested last Monday afternoon along Plaridel Street in barangay Umapad, Mandaue City.

Murphy “Peping” Irog-Irog, 34, and his wife Cheryl Irog-Irog, who are residents of barangay Basak Cagudoy in Lapu-Lapu City and natives of Tiparak, Tambulig, Zamboanga del Sur were arrested in an entrapment operation last Monday afternoon by policemen from the Opao police station.

Opao police station chief P Sr./Insp. Alfredo Ortiz said the couple was arrested after Jeffreey Densing, 29, single, of barangay Opao, Mandaue City filed a complaint alleging that the couple was extorting money from him.

According to Densing, he had pawned his necklace to the couple for only P1,000 only and when he came to redeem it for P1,500, the couple after receiving the money, did not return the jewelry to him.

Densing said he went to the police after the couple again asked for another P1,500 for the return of the necklace.

Last Monday afternoon, the couple again asked for payment through a text message. Densing said that when the meeting place where the payment was to be made was arranged, he called the police.

Only the wife met Densing at a place along Plaridel Street. When Densing handed over the P1,500 to her, she did not give up the jewelry.

Then the police approached her and asked for identification, and when she failed to present any, she was arrested for vagrancy.

When frisked, the police found the money Densing had handed over to her, some foreign currencies, a cellular phone, a bracelet, and a necklace.

At the police station, the husband through a text message asked his wife how the transaction went and telling her he would wait for her at a supermarket in barangay Opao. But the police had seized the wife’s cellphone, so they made the reply themselves.

The police immediately went to Opao and arrested the man. Seized from him were shabu and drug paraphernalia.

Both man and woman are now detained at the Opao police station.

Charges are being prepared against them.   (FREEMAN NEWS)