Top Cebu ‘drug lord’ surrenders to Dela Rosa

Bea Cupin

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Top Cebu ‘drug lord’ surrenders to Dela Rosa
Central Visayas' alleged number 2 in the drug trade has surrendered to Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Ronald dela Rosa

MANILA, Philippines – Central Visayas’ alleged number 2 in the drug trade has surrendered to Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Ronald dela Rosa.

In a press briefing on Monday, August 8, Dela Rosa told reporters that Franz Sabalones surrendered Sunday evening, August 7, at Camp Crame. Sabalones was accompanied by his brother, Fralz, who is vice mayor of San Fernando town in Cebu.

Gusto ko lang magbago (I want to change),” Franz told reporters at the Multipurpose Center inside Camp Crame.

Fralz Sabalones, who ran for vice mayor in San Fernando under the banner of the Nationalist People’s Coalition in 2016, said he was “mistakenly” tagged as being involved in drugs.

Sakit sa akong ulo no na karon na nakuanan ta ba kay dugay na nakadungog ko sa iyang pangalan pero wa pa nako na kumpirma kay nalain mi ug linya sa pagtan-aw sa kinabuhi,” explained the vice mayor, who was among the many local chief executives who trooped to Camp Crame on Monday, days after President Rodrigo Duterte read a list of politicians, judges and cops with alleged ties to illegal drugs.

(I was annoyed when I heard reports of my brother’s links to drugs, but I couldn’t confirm it because we chose different paths in life.)

Franz Sabalones, according to Dela Rosa, is at the level of “Jaguar,” or the top drug lord, in Central Visayas. Jaguar was killed in Metro Manila in June, ahead of Duterte or Dela Rosa’s assumption to power.

Dela Rosa, recounting Sabalones’ earlier narration, said Franz was formerly an “underling” of Jaguar who later found his own source of illegal drugs from the New Bilibid Prison, a high-security detention facility in Muntinlupa City.

A high-end SUV would haul 10-15 kilos of drugs from Bilibid to Cebu City, its point of distribution.

The alleged Cebuano drug lord will be turned over the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) in Camp Crame, where he will formally execute an affidavit. Dela Rosa said Sabalones is likely to undergo inquest proceedings, given the evidence against him.

Before he left, however, Dela Rosa had a simply and straight warning: “Basta ito kung hindi siya magbago… ah, mapapatay talaga ito. Magbago talaga ito dapat. Ang dami mo nang sinirang buhay sa Central Visayas.”

(If this guy doesn’t change, he will surely get killed. So he really needs to change. You’ve already ruined too many lives in Central Visayas.)

Police in Camp Crame have yet to validate if there is a standing case or arrest warrant against Sabalones. – Rappler.com

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Bea Cupin

Bea is a senior multimedia reporter who covers national politics. She's been a journalist since 2011 and has written about Congress, the national police, and the Liberal Party for Rappler.