Three arrested in Negros, Bacolod with P306,000 worth of ‘shabu’

Police seized P204,000 worth of suspected shabu in a buy-bust operation in Barangay 20, Bacolod City Thursday. (Photo courtesy of Bacolod City Police Office)

By Glazyl Y. Masculino

BACOLOD CITY – Police actions this week in Bacolod and Negros Occidental resulted in the arrest of three individuals and the confiscation of suspected shabu valued at P306,000.

Bacolod City resident Romi Maquiling, 56, from Barangay Taculing, was detained during a drug operation conducted at Purok Tisa, Barangay 20 last Thursday. Officers recovered 30 grams of the substance from Maquiling, estimated at P204,000.

The Bacolod City Police Office (BCPO) reported that Maquiling had previously been arrested on drug charges in 2016 and was released after serving his sentence in December 2021. The police have classified Maquiling as a high-value target and he is currently held at Police Station 4.

A separate incident on Monday in Hacienda Laua-an, Barangay 20, Victorias City, led to the arrest of two more individuals, one of whom is a photographer. The two were caught in a sting operation and were found in possession of 15 grams of suspected shabu, with a street value of P102,000.

The Bacolod City Police Office has shared an image of the P204,000 worth of suspected shabu seized during the bust in Barangay 20, Bacolod City, from last Thursday’s operation.