CEBU City police have arrested an Indian national and seized bottles of suspected opium during a search operation in Barangay Kasambagan on Wednesday afternoon.
The arrest of Lalith Chellaram Sangwani, 42, a resident of Barangay Camputhaw and operator of a mini mart along F. Cabahug Street, followed a surveillance effort based on an intelligence packet developed by anti-drug units.
Sangwani was taken into custody around 3:20 p.m. after officers from the PNP Drug Enforcement Group (PNP-DEG) and the Special Operations Unit 7 (SOU7) served a court-issued search warrant at his store.
The search warrant, issued by Regional Trial Court Branch 17 Executive Judge Anacleto Debalucos, was the result of coordination among PNP-DEG, the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency 7 (PDEA-7), the Mabolo Police Station, Regional Intelligence Unit 7 (RIU-7), and Integrity Monitoring and Enforcement Group (IMEG).
Investigators identified Sangwani as a newly emerging drug personality through recent intelligence, with reports indicating he was allegedly selling illegal drugs while operating his store. A test-buy operation and supporting case buildup led to the approval of the search warrant.
During the operation, law enforcers confiscated a total of 32 bottles containing suspected opium, along with two small self-sealing packs of a dark brown substance also believed to be opium.
The seized narcotics weighed approximately 320 grams, with a standard drug price of P208,000. Police also recovered P163,455,000 in cash, multiple ATM and credit cards from different banks, identification documents, several electronic devices, a digital video recorder (DVR) unit, passports, and identification cards.
The suspected narcotics have been turned over to the PNP Forensic Unit 7 for chemical analysis, while investigators said additional complaints may follow pending the results of laboratory tests and the financial inquiry into the large amount of cash recovered. Sangwani is currently detained at the Mabolo Police Station pending the filing of drug-possession charges under the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.
metrosundaily
