COTABATO CITY (MindaNews / 18 Aug) – Police here arrested Wednesday evening a barangay captain from Maguindanao for illegal possession of high powered firearms and illegal drugs.
Insp. Rustum Pastolero, police station 3 commander, identified the suspect as Datu Darry Dilangalen Sinsuat Jr., chair of Barangay Bungued, Datu Odin Sinsuat municipality.
Pastolero said Sinsuat’s Toyota Revo was flagged down by police operatives at a checkpoint along Tamontaka Bridge around 9:45 in the evening.
“We flagged down his vehicle for plain view inspection and we found the firearms, so we asked him to disembark and he politely obeyed,” Pastolero said.
Upon further inspection, police agents found an Ultimax submachine gun, KG-model automatic 9mm pistol and two Uzi type 9mm pistol. All were unlicensed, police said.
A sachet of shabu (methamphetamine hydrochloride) and paraphernalia were also seized from Sinsuat.
While he admitted the shabu was seized from his possession, Sinsuat said: “It was not mine but part of those recovered during anti-illegal drugs operation confiscated in my barangay.”
He said he has been helping the other barangay officials in the anti-drug campaign.
“It was recovered from drug users in my barangay. I just failed to surrender it to authorities,” he claimed.
Police are now preparing charges for illegal possession of firearms and for violating the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002. (Ferdinandh Cabrera / MindaNews)