OPERATIVES of the PNP Drug Enforcement Group (PDEG) killed a suspected drug pusher and seized nine kilos of suspected shabu worth P61.2 million in a shootout in Parañaque City on Tuesday night.
The PDEG named the slain suspect as Joe Marie Ordiales, alias Roger, whose cohort, identified as Arturo Santos, alias Pugo, managed to escape.
Police operatives posing as buyers had arranged to buy shabu from the suspects, who were described as “well-known distributors” of illegal drugs.
During the exchange on Enrique M. Factor Road in Barangay Don Galo at around 9:30 p.m., the suspects sensed they were dealing with authorities, leading to the firefight.
Aside from the shabu, also seized during the operation were the suspects’ Toyota Camry, a travelling bag, a cal. 45 pistol, and the buy-bust money.
PNP officer-in-charge Lt. Gen. Vicente Danao Jr, who rushed to the scene after the shootout, reiterated his warning against drug peddlers who will fight it out with policemen.
“If you will fight it out with our law enforcers, definitely something will happen to you,” Danao said, adding that policemen will not allow themselves to be shot first.
Danao said the Parañaque operation was a follow-up to a similar buy-bust operation on Mindanao Ave. in Quezon City last March 23 that resulted in the arrest of three suspects and seizure of some 57 kilos of shabu worth P387.6 million. One of the suspects was injured after he shot it out with cops.
Police seized nearly half-a-million pesos worth of suspected dangerous drugs, a gun, and an explosive and arrested three persons in a buy-bust operation in Cainta, Rizal last Tuesday.
Col. Dominic Baccay, Rizal PNP provincial director, identified the three Alex Almujela, Michael Viterbo, and Adriel Vallesteros, residents of Barangay San Andres, Cainta.
Seize from them were a hand grenade, a .38 revolver and several sachets of shabu with a street value of ₱476,000. — With Christian Oineza
