Anti-drug police unit raids South Cotabato mayor's home, bullets, grenade found
Local News • 16:52 PM Thu Nov 3, 2016
904
By:
Edwin Fernandez Radyo Bida Koronadal
Banga Mayor Albert Palencia sits as anti-narcotics agents conduct inventory of items seized from his home. (Radyo Bida)
KORONADAL CITY
– Police anti-narcotics agents raided
Thursday the residential house, piggery and six luxury cars of Mayor Albert
Palencia of Banga, South Cotabato.
Armed with
nine search warrants for firearms and prohibited drugs, the raiding team led by
Supt. Maximo Sebastian, chief of Regional Anti-Illegal Drugs Special Operations
Task Force (RAIDSOTF), barged inside the house of Palencia in Barangay Punong Grande,
Banga, South Cotabato at 3:30 a.m.
Based on
search warrants, the police were looking for illegal drugs, firearms and
explosives.
Palencia told reporters
he was awakened by the noise created by the raiding team when they barged in at
about 3and00 a.m.
Reporters covering the raid found the CCTV camera was destroyed and the glass door was forcibly broken. I was
surprised, but they found no drugs or guns, Palencia briefly told reporters as
he was brought by the raiding team to Gen. Santos City. Police found four
bullets for cal. 380.
sand//scontent.fceb2-2.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/14947773_1096709293769212_1628274644941062878_n.jpg?oh=82a315da921c7681d3c15109876679aeandampoe=58918C8C The raiding
team also searched the mayor’s six cars, including Toyota Fortuner, Hilux, Hummer and RAM vehicles and his piggery in nearby village. Piggery workers said the police were looking
for shabu laboratory. A rifle grenade was found in the mayor’s piggery.
We were told
to drop face down, the caretaker said. There’s no shabu lab here, what we
have are swine and feeds.
Palencia has
been accused of being a drug lord and gambling lord by his political rivals but
he repeatedly denied it. sand//scontent.fceb2-2.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/14900509_1096709230435885_304731920549730471_n.jpg?oh=123e3b9a567945399196cefb139fa676andampoe=5898971E sand//scontent.fceb2-2.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/14632926_1096709387102536_8161343424206503127_n.jpg?oh=88768b5e1a811737739eb9f540497c7dandampoe=58981696