A live-in couple considered high-value drug personalities was arrested in a buy-bust operation conducted by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency in Central Visayas (PDEA 7) and the Borbon Municipal Police Station on Wednesday evening, June 3, 2026. The operation took place around 9 p.m. in Sitio Galaban, Barangay Poblacion, Borbon, Cebu.
The suspects were identified by their aliases “Mervin,” 29, a farm handler, and “Gladys,” 32, a household helper. They reside in Barangay Masaba, Danao City, and had been on the regional target list of both PDEA and the Philippine National Police (PNP).
PDEA 7 Director Joel Plaza reported that authorities recovered five large packets of shabu weighing approximately 25 grams with an estimated street value of P170,000. Operatives also confiscated the marked money used in the buy-bust and a motorcycle allegedly used by the suspects to deliver illegal drugs to customers.
The seized evidence has been turned over to the PDEA 7 Regional Office Laboratory for chemical analysis and confirmation. According to PDEA 7 Information Officer Leia Alcantara, the suspects had been under surveillance and case build-up for more than a year. Their arrest was challenging because they frequently changed residences to evade law enforcement monitoring.
Authorities said the couple would often disappear and relocate whenever their associates in different parts of Cebu province were arrested. Based on intelligence gathered by PDEA 7, the suspects were allegedly capable of distributing between 25 and 50 grams of shabu every week, making them significant players in the local illegal drug trade.
The couple is currently detained at the PDEA 7 custodial facility in Sudlon, Barangay Lahug, Cebu City. Charges for violations of Section 5 (Sale of Dangerous Drugs) in relation to Section 26(b), and Section 11 (Possession of Dangerous Drugs), Article II of Republic Act 9165, or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002, are being prepared against the suspects.
