Mindanaotoday.com | ‘No cover-up,’ says PDEA-10 exec on death of 3 suspects in buy-bust op
By: Jigger Jerusalem
CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY – Brushing off speculations on a buy-bust operation that resulted to the death of three persons allegedly involved in dealing in illegal substance, a Phil. Drug Enforcement Agency-10 (PDEA-10) official has assured they will be transparent in any investigation that may arise from that recent shootout.
“There will be no cover-up. We rest assured that the buy-bust operation was properly performed by the PDEA,” said Expedito Cardona Jr., the provincial officer of PDEA-10’s Misamis Oriental field office, in an interview Wednesday, March 29.
Cardona was referring to the deaths of three individuals suspected to be engaged in dealing in methamphetamine hydrochloride or “shabu,” during a buy-bust operation that led to an armed encounter between one of the suspects and PDEA-10 agents in Barangay Carmen Tuesday night, March 28.
PDEA-10 identified those killed on the spot as Henrylle Go and Deovern Uy. A certain Aramina Hizon, who was with the other suspects when the operation happened, sustained gunshot wounds but died hours later in a hospital.
Go is said to have in possession of a police uniform and he was even called “sir” in the neighborhood, but a verification indicated he was not on the roster of the Phil. National Police, Cardona said.
“He [Go] was using the uniform probably as protection so that nobody would snitch on him,” he added.
Cardona said they were about to conclude the buy-bust operation when Go suddenly took out a hand gun and started shooting at the law enforcers.
He said the PDEA-10 operatives retaliated resulting to the deaths of Go and Uy, and later Hizon.
The PDEA-10 official said it was unfortunate that the suspects died during the encounter as they could have provided additional intelligence that could lead to more arrests.
“Before the operation, we have already gathered packets of intelligence. Had they been alive, they could have given us more information. We could have interrogated them,” Cardona said.
He said they followed protocol and footages from body-worn cameras will tell how the operation went.
To prove that the PDEA-10 agents did not tamper with the items at the crime scene, Cardona said they immediately called up personnel from the police’s Scene of Crime Operations to perform forensic investigation.
Confiscated from the suspects’ possession were about 70 grams of suspected shabu with an estimated street value of more than half a million pesos, and a .45 caliber pistol.
Cardona said the latest operation is the biggest confiscation of illegal drugs in the last three months. (MT)
###