ZAMBOANGA CITY (MindaNews / 22 Feb) – Combined government operatives killed a suspected drug pusher while two policemen were wounded in a shootout during a buy-bust operation early Saturday in Isabela City, Basilan province.
Three other suspected drug pushers, including a militiaman, were arrested while another one managed to escape, a police official disclosed.
Supt. Albert Larubis, Isabela City police chief, said the shootout ensued when the suspected drug pushers resisted the operatives after sensing it was a buy-bust operation.
Larubis said the buy-bust operation was carried out 6:25 a.m. Saturday at the residence of Abi Jaji, one of the suspected drug pushers in Barangay La Piedad.
Larubis said Jaji was killed in the shootout while his cohorts Saliy Robenson (a militiaman), Jose Ramon Dayrit and Diane Martin were arrested.
Larubis said another suspect named Kashmir Lim managed to escape.
He identified the wounded policemen as PO2 Esra Marinao and PO2 Jesseben Santua, both assigned with the Isabela City Police Station.
He said the raiding team recovered several sachets of suspected shabu, two caliber .45 pistols, one homemade 9mm submachine gun, several rounds of ammunition and prohibited drug paraphernalia.
The joint buy-bust operation was conducted by police from the Isabela City Police Station, Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA), Regional Intelligence Division-9 (RID-9) and of the Army’s 15th Special Forces Company (SFC).