BACOLOD CITY – Police arrested a suspected gunrunner and a student in a buy-bust operation in Purok Dondonay, Barangay Tapi, Kabankalan City, Negros Occidental on Friday, Oct. 29
Lt. Col. Alvimar Flores, Kabankalan police chief, said they received complaints against Ivan Lazarito, 36, of Barangay Tapi, for illegal discharge of firearm.
Lazarito was nabbed in an entrapment operation in his house and yielded a .45 caliber pistol with a magazine loaded with 10 bullets and the P3,500 marked money.
A student, Zedrich Bohol, 18, of Barangay Tapi, was caught inside Lazarito's house with illegal drugs.
Twenty-two grams of suspected shabu worth P149,600 and drug paraphernalia were confiscated from Bohol.
Flores said that they were monitoring Bohol for being a street-level individual.
He said that it was the third apprehension for Lazarito who had been arrested for illegal possession of firearm and ammunition and was involved in a hacking incident.
However, he was able to settle the hacking case while he is under probation for his other offense, Flores said.
Flores said that Lazarito allegedly gathers children in the barangay to show to them that he was armed and can protect them.
Charges for violation of Republic Act (RA) 10591 or the Comprehensive Firearm and Ammunition Law will be filed against Lazarito while Bohol will be charged for violation of RA 9165 or Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.