By EDWIN IYO
Correspondent
MEDINA, Misamis Oriental -- Authorities arrested a public school teacher during a buy-and-bust operation on Thursday morning here.
Misamis Oriental police director Col. Robert Roy Bahian identified the suspect as 53-year-old Arnold Duarte a.k.a. Opaw of Purok 3, Barangay North Poblacion, this town.
Bahian said Duarte has been a teacher at the Medina National Comprehensive High School for more than 21 years.
Seized from Duarte were a P1,000 bill used as marked money, a sachet of suspected shabu weighing at least a gram, P5,000 in cash and three more sachets of suspected shabu.
Bahian said Duarte has been a “high-value target” in the regional level.
The suspect is currently detained at the Medina police station and would be charged with violating the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.
Duarte is one of three male teachers who “surrendered” through Operation Toktok-Hangyo two years ago, said Teofilo Artiaga, the school’s principal.
“Abi nako’g nagbag-o na kay sa makadaghan nga higayon kanunay ko gapahimangno sa tanan maestro ug maestra nga kung ugaling kinsa pa kadtong nalambigit nga mo undang na gayod ani nga bisyo,” said Artiaga.
Artiaga said he hopes that the two other teachers, who were in the “Tokhang” list two years ago have already stopped being involved in the illegal drug activities.
Meanwhile in Makilala in North Cotabato, the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) and the police arrested a former soldier in an anti-drug operation around 2:30 am yesterday.
Maj. Arniel Melocotones, chief of the Makilala police station, identified the suspect as Ruel Lastimado, 49, a former member of the Army and former councilor of Barangay San Vicente, Makilala.
Melocotones said the suspect has been in their watch list for several months now.
Seized from Lastimado were 12 heat-sealed sachets of suspected shabu, an improvised Uzi firearm with several rounds of ammunition and a fragmentation grenade.
The suspect did not resist arrest when authorities presented a warrant from a local court to search his house and premises.
Lastimada told the raiding team that as a former military man, he has kept inside his house the firearm, grenade and ammunition.
Melocotones, however, said he has yet to know if the weapons were licensed.
Lastimada was placed under the custody of Makilala police pending the filing of complaints for drug trafficking and illegal possession of firearms and ammunition. (with reports from Malu Cadeliña-Manar, Mindanews)
