BACOLOD CITY – Police seized 1.2 kilos of suspected shabu valued at P8.5 million for the MassKara Festival from two drug personalities in a buy-bust operation in Barangay 1 here on Thursday, Oct. 13.

Lt. Joven Mogato, head of the City Drug Enforcement Unit (CDEU), identified the suspects as Alvin Cristales, 27, and Regina Escosio, 44, residents of Barangay 1.
Both are high-value individuals, according to the police.
Mogato said the suspects were arrested for a drug offense in 2017 and 2020.
Cristales was released through plea bargaining in 2020 while Escosio, an alleged drug runner, is under probation, Mogato said.
He said that Escosio reportedly met someone and picked up the contraband in La Carlota City, Negros Occidental.
Mogato said the illegal drug was allegedly intended for the MassKara Festival in this city because the demand is high, especially since the highlight of the festivity is approaching.
He said the illegal drug was sealed in a Chinese tea packaging and allegedly came outside the province.
With the big volume of shabu recovered, Mogato said its possible circulation for the festivity was lessened.
He said that monitoring, particularly of all entry points, is ongoing as part of their preventive measures against the arrival of illegal drugs.