Camp Olivas, Pampanga—Three suspected peddlers of illegal drugs were shot dead in separate places in Cabanatuan City following anti-drug operations along Mampulog Road, Barangay Bantug Norte over the weekend.
Police identified the suspects as Daniel Lorenzo Lopez, Jared Beronio Asuncion, and Jake Feliciano Elvambuena, all residents of the area.
The group, police said, was responsible for the distribution of shabu and marijuana in Cabanatuan City and nearby towns in Nueva Ecija.
Some P103,000 worth of shabu were seized from the suspects’ possession, police said.
Policemen recovered a caliber .45 pistol, a caliber .38 revolver, and a fragmentation hand grenade near the bodies of the slain drug personalities.
Investigators also recovered several spent shells from different caliber firearms at the scene.
Elvambuena has a standing warrant of arrest for murder issued by Judge Maximo Ancheta of Gapan City Regional Trial Court.
“The suspects were placed under tight watch by the police after reports on alleged involvement in illegal drugs trade in the city,” the police report stated.
On Saturday, police received reports from the community on the presence of the suspects along Mampulog Road, prompting the local anti-narcotics unit to launch an operation against them.
The suspects died as approaching cops exchanged gunfire with them.