By Jennifer P. Rendon
An ex-convict was arrested during a police anti-narcotics operation on the evening of January 12 in Pototan, Iloilo.
Police identified the suspect as alias “Bombay,” 50, a resident of Barangay Purog, Pototan.
Members of the Iloilo Police Provincial Office-Provincial Drug Enforcement Unit (IPPO-PDEU) Team 2, along with operatives from the Pototan Municipal Police Station, Regional Mobile Force Battalion (RMFB) 6, 603rd Mobile Company, and IPPO Provincial Intelligence Unit, apprehended the suspect after he sold a sachet of suspected shabu for PHP 2,100.
During a frisk, police recovered eight additional sachets of suspected shabu and various non-drug items.
Major Dadje Delima, IPPO-PDEU chief, stated that the seized drugs weighed approximately 70 grams with a standard drug value of PHP 476,000.
Police also arrested Bombay’s son, 26-year-old Paul John, for attempted homicide.
Paul John allegedly tried to stab the police poseur buyer to prevent his father’s arrest.
Other officers quickly subdued him before he could inflict harm.
Meanwhile, Bombay has a history of previous criminal offenses.
He was charged with robbery in Iloilo City in 2000 and was arrested for a drug-related offense in 2016.
He was released after serving his sentence but was later monitored for involvement in illegal drug activities again.
The PDEU had placed Bombay under surveillance after receiving a tip from an informant claiming he had resumed drug operations in Pototan and Barotac Nuevo.
Both suspects are now in police custody and will face charges.
Bombay will be charged with violating Republic Act 9165, or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002, while Paul John will face charges for attempted homicide.
