2 men caught selling 150 cocaine capsules

MANILA, Philippines - Two men were arrested Wednesday for allegedly selling 150 cocaine capsules in Pasig City, the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) said yesterday.

PDEA chief Jose Gutierrez Jr. said Mark Troid Soto, 28, and Mervin Velasco, 31, sold the capsules to an undercover agent who posed as a buyer. The entrapment took place in front of a pizza parlor along C. Raymundo Avenue. The two suspects are residents of Barangay Caniogan in Pasig.

The cocaine capsules, with a total weight of 82.7 grams, were in three resealable plastic sachets. With a street value of P5 million per kilo, the seized capsules are worth at least P400,000, PDEA said.

PDEA-National Capital Region agents, who conducted the entrapment, also confiscated a cell phone and a red Kawasaki Rouser motorcycle from the suspects.

Soto and Velasco, who are detained at the PDEA custodial facility in Quezon City, are facing charges for violating the anti-drug law.