DAVAO CITY – A 40-year old laborer was arrested by police officers after trying to bring drugs hidden in a lotion container inside the provincial jail in Davao del Norte Provincial Capitol Wednesday noon.
The suspect was identified as Anthony Sumaya, a resident of Purok Pagkakaisa, Mabini, Compostela Valley Province.
According to jail guard Eva Laude Labastida, Sumaya arrived in the provincial jail around 12:20 noon with a bag of groceries.
But upon inspection, Labastida said they found one sachet of suspected drugs inside a lotion container.
Sumaya said he was only asked by an unidentified woman to bring in the grocery bags inside the prison in exchange for P50.
Sumaya said he was unaware that the package he was asked to deliver had drugs in it.
Sumaya’s arrest adds to the cases of illegal drug trade in Compostela Valley provincial jail.
Last month, a woman was also nabbed in the same prison house after trying to conceal drugs inside a sanitary pad she wore while visiting her live-in partner also charged for illegal drug use.
Last December, jail warden of Compostela Valley provincial jail, Jose Mervin Coquilla was held by the New People’s Army (NPA) for investigation on his alleged involvement with illegal drugs trade, corruption and negligence inside the prison.
Coquilla, who heads the Compostela Valley Provincial Rehabilitation Center in Tagum City, was taken by the NPA in Panabo City, Davao del Norte.
Coquilla was later released by the NPA on humanitarian grounds.
Meanwhile, the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) annual report recently found out that there are more elected officials and government employees involved in illegal drugs trade with 190 arrested in 2014.
PDEA Director General Arturo Cacdac Jr. said the figure is 37.68 percent higher than last year’s data where 138 government officials were arrested for illegal drugs.(davaotoday.com)
Read related story: Sanitary pad hides illegal drugs
