Sinaloa drug ring leader seeks bail

MANILA, Philippines - A Mexican man believed to be a leader of the Sinaloa drug cartel yesterday filed a petition for bail before the Makati City Regional Trial Court.

Horacio Hernandez Herrera asked Judge Tranquil Salvador of the Makati RTC Branch 63 to allow him to post bail.

Assistant State Prosecutor Juan Pedro Navera, however, said they would oppose Herrera’s plea.

Herrera pleaded not guilty to the charge of selling 2.2 kilos of cocaine with a street value of around P12 million during his arraignment on June 17.

The judge ordered Navera to submit his comment on the petition within 10 days.

During the pre-trial conference yesterday, Herrera’s lawyer, William de los Santos, said his client has the right to post bail and to a speedy trial.

The court set the hearing on Oct. 28.

Navera said state prosecutors would present to the court witnesses and agents of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) who arrested Herrera during the resumption of the pre-trial conference on Oct. 1.

PDEA operatives and the police Anti-Illegal Drug Special Operations Task Force nabbed Herrera in a drug sting in front of a hotel along Makati Avenue in January. He yielded 2.2 kilos of cocaine to undercover police officers.

Herrera is being held at the PDEA headquarters in Quezon City and may be transferred to the Makati City jail.