The parking area of the provincial capitol compound was the unlikely site of a buy-bust operation by the local police, who apprehended a 45-year-old tricycle driver for selling shabu to an undercover police officer last Friday.
Elements of the Catanduanes Police Intelligence Unit (CAT-PIU led by PLt. Eliseo L. Villar, Jr. I, together with law enforcers from the Virac Municipal Police Station, Regional Police Drug Enforcement Unit 5 (RPDEU-5) and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA), Catanduanes under the supervision of Chief of Police PMaj. Kenneth Ding C. Gutierrez, nabbed Silvia Romero Yosorez, a resident of Purok 1, Palnab del Sur, Virac, at 11:37 AM of Sept. 18, 2026 after she handed over a sachet of the suspected prohibited drug to the poseur buyer.
Aside from the sachet sold to the police officer, the team found in her possession another heat sealed, transparent plastic sachet containing white crystalline substance believed to be methamphetamine hydrochloride.
The drug items weighed a total of 9 grams more or less, with a street value of P61,200.00, the police report stated.
Also confiscated were several non-drug items such as a Redmi cellphone, a motorcycle (E588MH) with sidecar bearing body number 2464 and the P12,000 “budol” money consisting of one genuine P500 bill and 23 pieces of counterfeit P500 bills.
According to the police, surveillance conducted by intelligence personnel monitored the suspect using the provincial capitol compound as the location of her illegal drug transactions and subsequently mounted the buy-bust operation against her.
The marking and inventory of the evidence was conducted at the place of incident in the presence of a representative from the Department of Justice (DOJ) and a barangay councilor in accordance with the provisions of Republic Act 9165, or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.
Yosorez will be charged for violation of Sections 5 and 11 of RA 9165 for the sale and possession of dangerous drugs.
The Catanduanes police have yet to confirm from the Crime Information Reporting and Analysis System (CIRAS) if she has a previous record of involvement in any crime.