ILOILO CITY: Police arrested two suspected drug smugglers on Wednesday, and seized substance believed to be shabu (methamphetamine hydrochloride) worth P6 million in operations in Barangay Tiolas in San Joaquin town in Iloilo province.
Chief Insp. John Ray Doseo, chief of the Provincial Anti-Illegal Drugs Special Operations Task Group of the Iloilo Provincial Police Office (IPPO-PAIDSOTG) identified the suspects who were nabbed in the 1:30 p.m. operations as Jekerie Sepi, 38, of Barangay Bakhaw, Mandurriao, Iloilo City, and Rasmia Mustapa, 39, of Barangay Culiat in Quezon City, and a native of Cotabato Province in Mindanao.
Recovered from their possession was a kilogram of suspected shabu packed in a big self-sealing sachet. Also seized were the marked money for P181,000, two cell phones and other items pending inventory of the police operatives.
Doseo said Sepi and Mustapa were on their watchlist of big-time couriers or distributors of illegal drugs.
“They are part of our previous operations last year. We have been transacting with them several months back and we were able to consummate the deal today,” Doseo said in an interview over RMN radio.
The drugs recovered from the suspects were from Metro Manila and transported via a roll-on-roll-off vessel for distribution in the province of Iloilo.
Doseo said they have started questioning the suspects to determine the source of their drugs.
Sepi resides in Barangay Bakhaw, which is among the areas of concern listed by the Philippine Drugs Enforcement Agency, when it comes to the illegal drug trade.
The suspects are in the custody of the IPPO-PAIDSOTG pending the filing of cases for violation of Republic Act 9165.
