ILOILO CITY: The Police Regional Office 6 (PRO-6) has recorded its largest haul of illegal drugs so far this month, with the confiscation of P7 million worth of suspected shabu in Santa Barbara, Iloilo.

The police seized around 1,040 grams of suspected shabu in Barangay Cabugao Sur on Thursday evening, May 2.

The operation also led to the arrest of two suspects identified as alias Bryan, a bar bouncer in Iloilo City temporarily residing in Barangay Camambugan, Santa Barbara, Iloilo, and alias Perper, a 38-year-old resident of Zone 2, Barangay Tanza Timawa, Iloilo City.

Records show that alias Brian has a previous case of robbery in San Jose, Antique.

Both suspects have been identified as high-value targets by the PRO-6.

They were also found in possession of illegal firearms such as a caliber.357 with three live cartridges from alias Bryan and an improvised shotgun with two live cartridges from alias Perper.

The joint operation was conducted by the Regional Drug Enforcement Unit 6, Santa Barbara Municipal Police Station, Provincial Drug Enforcement Unit of the Iloilo Police Provincial Office (IPPO) and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency.

"This successful operation reflects how serious and committed you are in your sworn duties. Let's maintain the intensity of our campaign against these illegal drug traffickers," PRO-6 Director BGen. Jack Wanky said in a statement.

Wanky, who conducted his first command visit at the IPPO on Friday, May 3, said it will strengthen the intelligence monitoring capacity of the provincial office against illegal drugs, especially in the seaports and coastal areas of the province.

The PRO-6 director also mentioned the possibility of relocating the IPPO headquarters from Santa Barbara to Passi City.

It can be recalled that on April 18, Col. Ronaldo Palomo was relieved of his duties as IPPO director and reassigned to the Regional Personnel Holding and Accounting Section. This decision followed warnings from Wanky regarding Palomo's low apprehension rate in relation to illegal gambling.

Currently, Col. Bayani Razalan serves as the officer in charge of the IPPO.

Wanky said the Philippine National Police national headquarters has yet to provide Iloilo Gov. Arthur Defensor Jr. with a list of eligible police colonels for the IPPO director position.