CONFISCATED DRUGS. Operatives of the Bacolod City Police Office City Drug Enforcement Unit seize PHP782,000 worth of shabu from a drug personality during a buy-bust in Barangay 4 on Thursday night (April 20, 2023). The arrested suspect, John Millan Lucasan, is listed as a high-value target. (Photo courtesy of Bacolod City Police Office)
BACOLOD CITY – Anti-drug teams of the Bacolod City Police Office (BCPO) have arrested two drug personalities and seized a total of PHP1.054 million in suspected shabu in two separate sting operations in the past two days.
On Thursday night, suspect John Millan Lucasan, 59, a high-value individual listed as a priority target, was apprehended at his residence in Purok Oraro, Barangay 4 by operatives of the City Drug Enforcement Unit.
Around 10:20 p.m., Lucasan sold a sachet of shabu worth PHP1,000 to a poseur-buyer, police report showed.
He also yielded one knot-tied plastic bag and three heat-sealed sachets containing about 115 grams of shabu with a standard drug price of PHP782,000, along with PHP140 in cash.
Lt. Col. Sherlock Gabana, chief of BCPO Community Affairs and Development Unit, said Lucasan, a member of the Maria Caunda drug group, had posted bail for a previous case also for violation of Republic Act 9165 or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.
“He has a case involving Section 11 (possession of dangerous drugs). He’s out on bail. The hearing for his case is ongoing,” he added.
Gabana said an investigation is ongoing to determine the source of the illegal drugs recovered from the suspect, who is detained at Police Station 2.
On Wednesday afternoon, operatives of Police Station 1 arrested Romar Espinosa, 31, during a buy-bust in Purok Boulevard, Barangay 13.
An undercover policeman purchased from the suspect a sachet of shabu for PHP500 during the operation around 5:47 p.m., a police report said.
Operatives also found in his possession 19 small plastic sachets of the same prohibited substance, weighing 20 grams, with a market value of PHP272,000.
Charges for violation of RA 9165 Section 5 (sale of dangerous drugs) and Section 11 (possession of dangerous drugs) are being readied against the suspects. (PNA)
