Anti-narcotics agents arrested six people, including a stepson of municipal vice mayor, during a buy-bust in Tawi-tawi, the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency said on Friday.
PDEA identified those nabbed inside a suspected drug den as Abelardo Burahim, 33; Khaizar Jumandil, 22, a son of an incumbent municipal councilor of Bongao and the step-son of the incumbent municipal vice mayor of Bongao; Abdulnaser Ipla, 48; Al-Jami Abduriji Dorie, 23; Benjamin Paradji, 31; and Henry Abdurahman Bariwa, 20.
The owner of the drug den, Mansul, managed to elude arrest.
Reports showed that last March 25, at around 3:30 p.m., authorities conducted a buy-bust operation along the neighborhood in Salamat Street, Poblacion, Bongao, Tawi-Tawi.
The suspects were arrested at Mansul’s house which doubled as a drug den, the report said.
Confiscated during the operation were seven heat-sealed transparent plastic sachets containing white crystalline substance suspected to be shabu and various drug paraphernalia.
Mansul ran away with the three pieces of P100 bill used as marked money.
Confiscated pieces of drug evidence were brought to Tawi-Tawi Provincial Crime Laboratory for forensic examination.
The suspects are now detained at the Bongao police station and will face drug charges.
An additional charge for maintaining a drug den will be fied in court against Mansul.