Drug charges will be filed today against a barangay councilor and three other suspects who were arrested for selling and using drugs inside a funeral parlor during a police buy-bust operation in Barangay Toril Proper, Toril District on Friday afternoon.
Lt. Col. Jed Clamor, the commander of the operating Toril Police Station, identified the government official as Marcelo Papalid Ramos, 46, a barangay councilor of Lubogan, Toril.
Also arrested were embalmer Jimmy Sayman Abi-Abi, 42, and funeral parlor staff members Rogelio Pedeles Tayan Jr. and Elinai Roda Rasay, 27, all from Toril District.
Reports said the four conspired in selling the illegal drugs during the buy-bust set at Villa Funeral Homes along McLeod Street around 2 p.m.
Agents arrested the suspects after Abi-Abi gave the sachet, suspected to contain shabu, to an undercover police buyer for P1,000.
Clamor said the four suspects were having shabu session when they were caught during the buy-bust operation.
The police commander said they seized 10 other small sachets and one big sachet, said to contain shabu in the possession of the barangay official. The confiscated items were estimated to worth P45,000.
An improvised lighter with improvised needle and an improvised tooter were also confiscated.
Clamor said Ramos, being a government official, is a high value target.
“He was under surveillance for than a month,” the police commander said.
