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BY RUBY P. SILUBRICO
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Thursday, March 2, 2017
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ILOILO City – The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) Region 6 charged husband and wife drug suspects Rolando and Ime Torpio with violating the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002 yesterday.
The couple was specifically charged with illegal drug possession, a violation of the Act’s Section 11.
The complaint was filed at the Iloilo City Prosecutor’s Office a day after PDEA raided the Torpios’ residence in Barangay South San Jose, Molo district.
Ime denied ownership of the shabu that PDEA agents seized from their bedroom but according to PDEA assistant regional director Levi Ortiz, she was seen throwing two big sachets of shabu outside their window. She was arrested.
PDEA failed to arrest Rolando but was nevertheless charged. Ortiz said they received information that Rolando resumed illegal drug activities after posting bail for a 2013 drug case just this January.
“We are hopeful that this time, the court won’t allow him to post bail,” said Ortiz.
If found guilty by the court, the Torpios could be meted with reclusion perpetua and fined between half a million pesos to P10 million.
Rolando was released from the Iloilo District Jail on Jan. 13 after posting a P40,000 bail bond.
The 70 grams of shabu – worth P500,000 – recovered from the Torpio residence exceeded the volume that the law set for a drug suspect to post bail, said Ortiz.
Within police circles, Rolando is known for aliases “Apa” and “Striker.” He was also believed to have ties with slain drug lord Melvin “Boyet” Odicta Sr.
In December 2013 Rolando was charged with possession of drug paraphernalia at the Iloilo City Prosecutor’s Office. His case, however, gained traction only last February 2016. It was raffled to a regional trial court and the following month, he posted a P40,000 bail bond for his temporary liberty.
Seven months later, Rolando asked the court to cancel his bail bond. Fearing for his life outside of prison, he sought incarceration at the jail in Barangay Ungka, Jaro.
Just this January, Rolando changed his mind once more and posted bail.
July 7 last year, Rolando – listed No. 5 in the Iloilo City Police Office’s target list of suspected drug personalities – surrendered. But he was released a few hours after. He claimed to have stopped pushing drugs as early as 2014./PN
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