PDEA, police bust woman with P1.1M shabu in Daet

By Juan Escandor Jr. NAGA CITY--- A joint operation of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) busted a woman who sold an agent with P1.1M worth of methamphetamine hydrochloride or ‘shabu’ late night in Daet, Camarines Norte, the PDEA reported. PDEA provincial officer Joyian Ceda identified the suspect as Maria Veronica Duero, 35, resident of Barangay Camambugan in Daet, Camarines Norte. Ceda said Duero was contacted by a PDEA agent for the sale of 250 grams or ¼ kilo of shabu and set the location for the handover of the illegal item in the village resort of Bagasbas at about 11:40 p.m. on January 26. She said the suspect, aboard a tricycle, was immediately arrested when she accepted the decoy money from the poseur agent and then confiscated the suspected shabu placed in a plastic. Ceda said they have learned that the source of the shabu was from the Bilibid prison. He declined, however, to give further details because of the on-going follow-up operations. She said Duero is now under the custody of the PDEA while a case for violating RA 9165 or the anti-drug law is being prepared against her.