No Drug Den, Lab in San Fabian – Police Chief

By Mortz C. Ortigoza

SAN FABIAN – The chief of police here vehemently denies the allegation that rampant used of shabu and its laboratory existed at the Perez Park in Barangay Bolasi here.

Shabu Laboratory in Manila

Police Chief Inspector Crisante Pagaduan Sadino said that the reports of lawyer Consuelo S. Perez at his office, the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency and the office of Chairman Antonio Villar, Jr. of the Dangerous Drugs Board that customers at the beach huts near her house have been flagrantly using the illegal drug methamphetamine hydrochloride or shabu, whose obnoxious smell affronted Perez, were baseless.

Media reports also said that the nuisance smell have been suspected to come from the illegal drug laboratory.

“The text complaint relative to the alleged horrible smelling shabu is believed to be from the smoke of the burned dried leaves of umbrella tree coming from the nearby premises of Dr. Mario Meneses which is not shabu,” Sadino explained to Northern Watch.

“Horrible smell is carried by the wind through my open sala. Please address this. Thank you,” the content of Perez text messages as quoted by the police's validation report.

Sadino cited that the house of Perez, surrounded by a five feet concrete wall, adjoins the house of Dr. Meneses. He said 50 meters away from the residence of Perez is the house of Bolasi Barangay Chairman Juanito Pedral.

“Furthermore, this office conducts neighborhood check on the complainant and in view of the information gathered there is no sign of drug laboratory and proliferation of drugs in the area”.

He said what his men found out was that Feliciitas Serraon, the caretaker of Meneses for eight years, has been burning the leaves of umbrella tree and heaps in an open area. He said his personnel advice the caretaker to make a pit where she could burn the garbage so that the offensive smells would be mitigated.

Sadino said there could be no rampant use of shabu in the area as the drug is an odourless substance.

“Shabu is a white, odourless crystal or crystalline powder and abusers/user take this drug through ingestion, inhalation, sniffing or by injection in a covered area such as room which is irrelevant to the forwarded text message of the complainant to quote “ horrible smell is carried by the wind through my open sala,” the police chief cited.

Although the police have found the reports baseless, Sadino said his men still keep monitoring the place for any illegal activity.

Sadino explained his side to Northern Watch after he was asked by Pangasinan Police Provincial Director Rey Biay to refute media reports that there was a shabu laboratory that operates in this town.