Balatan drug pusher slain in drug sting

NAGA CITY --- A drug peddler was shot dead in a gunfight with police authorities in Balatan town on Wednesday, May 13, while a farmer from Nabua town was wounded in a shooting incident the following day, police authorities said.

According to police report, operatives of the Balatan Municipal Police Station (MPS) and Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) conducted a buy bust operation in the morning of May 13 in Barangay Cabanbanan, Balatan, Camarines Sur, against Muhammad Samid, a resident of Iriga City.

Samid reportedly drew his gun after noticing that the buyer was a police operative. He then fired his gun but missed the cops. The police operatives were forced to fire back, hitting the suspect in the body. He died aboard an ambulance on the way to the nearest hospital.

The Scene of the Crime Operatives (SOCO) recovered from the suspect six plastic sachets of shabu, a 38 caliber pistol, a shotgun, ammunitions, and personal belongings.

The police are now in pursuit of Samid’s companion, who escaped from the crime scene aboard a motorcycle.

In a related incident, on May 14 at 2:50 AM, Mamerto Valenzuela Jr., 30, a farmer of Barangay Inapatan, in Nabua town was shot in his right thigh while inside his house.

The victim said he noticed unidentified individuals in his backyard at the time of the incident. He said he knocked on the wall of his house, which is made of galvanized iron to scare the individuals.

Then, an unidentified gunman fired from the outside and wounded the victim.

In an interview, Police Senior Master Sergeant Bryan Pentecostes, the case investigator, said that Valenzuela’s neighbors are being considered as persons of interest.

He said the victim refused to identify the suspects although he recognized them as residents of the same barangay.

Pentecostes said they are still investigating the motive behind the shooting. The victim is now recovering from the gunshot wound.