2 shabu dealers busted by cooperating cops, relatives in Sultan Kudarat

COTABATO CITY — Policemen arrested two shabu peddlers on Wednesday, June 18, in Sultan Kudarat town, Maguindanao del Norte, during an operation coordinated with local elders and Muslim religious leaders.

Local officials and senior members of the multi-sector Sultan Kudarat Municipal Peace and Order Council told reporters on Thursday, June 19, that the suspects, Chominie Albano Taruyan and Andrie Dumancas Fabric, are now detained, charged with violation of the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.

Brig. Gen. Romeo Juan Macapaz, director of the Police Regional Office–Bangsamoro Autonomous Region, said on Thursday that local officials, Muslim religious leaders and relatives of Taruyan and Fabric advised the Sultan Kudarat Municipal Police Station personnel, led by Lt. Col. Esmael Madin, on the best location to entrap the suspects.

The operation that led to their arrest and confiscation of P24,684 worth of shabu was laid with the help of the vigilant tipsters, according to Macapaz.

Macapaz said Madin and his subordinates immediately detained Taruyan and Fabric after selling to them P24,684 worth of shabu in a tradeoff at Barangay Ungap in Sultan Kudarat, while their relatives who provided tips on their exact location were observing the operation in houses around. 

Taruyan and Fabric voluntarily yielded when they sensed that they had sold shabu to policemen disguised as drug dependents.