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[av_heading heading=’ Moles helping top drug suspects? ‘ tag=’h3′ style=’blockquote modern-quote’ size=’30’ subheading_active=’subheading_below’ subheading_size=’15’ padding=’10’ color=” custom_font=”]
BY IAN PAUL CORDERO and RUBY SILUBRICO
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ILOILO City – Moles in law enforcement agencies could be helping the suspected leaders of the Bolivar and Balume drug groups, according to the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) Region 6.
After the death of drug lord Richard Prevendido of Barangay Bakhaw, Mandurriao district, PDEA and the Police Regional Office 6 (PRO-6) started hunting their next two priority targets – Ernesto Bolivar and Arturo “Master Pedic” Balume.
Bolivar, a resident of Barangay Guinacas, Pototan, Iloilo, is a suspected subgroup leader of Prevendido with a standing arrest warrant for an illegal drug case. On the other hand, Balume is a resident of Sara, Iloilo in the 5th District.
The Balume group operates in northern Iloilo while the Bolivar drug group in central Iloilo and province of Capiz, police said.
According to Regional Director Wardley Getalla of PDEA, Bolivar and Balume certainly knew they were being hunted and were likely taking extra measures not to get caught.
Getalla was also not discounting the possibility that Bolivar and Balume have contacts with law enforcers themselves from whom they could “ask for tips and information about operations.”
PDEA is establishing a better intelligence network to track Bolivar and Balume, said Getalla, and among others, the agency is determining the suspects’ possible coddlers or protectors, and accomplices.
While PDEA has not set a deadline for catching or neutralizing Bolivar and Balume, Getalla said, the agency was giving itself 30 days of “intensified search” before turning their attention to other suspects – temporarily.
“Wala pong time limit pero gumagawa kami ng one-month intensified search para ma-locate sila,” Getalla said. “’Pag hindi ma-locate, ibang suspects muna iyong inuuna namin.”
He appealed to anyone with information on Balume and Bolivar to report to the nearest police station.
“Or they (the suspects) can submit themselves voluntarily to any authority of the law anytime,” said Getalla.
The PRO-6, meanwhile, has created a tracker team.
“Some of the members were also among those who worked to find Prevendido,” said Superintendent Gilbert Gorero, spokesperson of the regional police.
Prevendido was killed in a shootout with policemen in Barangay Balabago, Jaro district on Sept. 1.
Bolivar was charged with violating the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002 after a buy-bust operation at his house on Nov. 9, 2016.
He managed to flee but operatives of PDEA and PRO-6’s Regional Anti-Illegal Drugs Special Operations Task Group recovered a large plastic sachet of shabu.
Chief Superintendent Cesar Hawthorne Binag, regional police director, urged Bolivar and Balume to better surrender peacefully.
“Do not engage the police like what Prevendido did,” he said. “I assure their safety. Ayaw namin magpatay kasi they deserve to live and face their cases.”/PN
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