ILOILO City – Policemen are hunting down 10 high-value illegal drug suspects in Western Visayas despite the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, according to the Police Regional Office 6 (PRO-6).
Unit commanders have been ordered to mobilize tracker teams, said Police Brigadier General Rene Pamuspusan, PRO-6 director.
“They should not try to fight our personnel,” said Pamuspusan.
Fugitive drug suspect Ernesto Bolivar is one of the 10 targets, he revealed. He did not name the nine others.
“Bolivar is not here. He is hiding outside Region 6. But we will continue pursuing him,” Pamuspusan said.
A resident of Barangay Guinacas, Pototan, Iloilo, Bolivar has been in hiding since 2017.
Bolivar, 41, became the region’s top drug target after the death in September 2017 of drug lord Richard Prevendido.
Bolivar was believed to be a minion of Prevendido and stepped up drug trafficking activities after his boss died in a shootout with policemen on Sept. 1, 2017 in Barangay Balabago, Jaro district here.
To avoid detection, sources said, Bolivar has tapped the services of personalities whom the police are not familiar with.
Sources further told Panay News Bolivar has lots of money to buy protection from policemen and even businessmen.
Bolivar has a pending arrest warrant for violation of the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.
Although he managed to escape from policemen trying to entrap him in a buy-bust operation at his house in Barangay Guinacas, Pototan on Nov. 9, 2016, he was charged.
PRO-6 aims to “clear” drug-affected areas in coordination with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA), he added.
Since January this year, a total of 1,014 drug pushers have been arrested in 710 police operations, PRO-6 data showed.
Within that period, 5,728.06 grams of shabu and 446.66 grams of marijuana with a total value of P66.3 million were confiscated./PN
