Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre reported the successful prosecution by the DOJ-National Prosecution Service (DOJ-NPS) of cases against 10 individuals from the Visayas Region for Violation of RA 9165 (Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002).

In separate Decisions, Noli Basilga, Edwin Fiel, Marlon Cortes, Reme Gregorio, Christzalyn Zuniega, Raffy Bandrang, and Ronnie Zerna were found guilty beyond reasonable doubt of Violation of Sec. 5, Article II of the law for selling dangerous drugs.

The seven accused were sentenced by different courts to a jail term of life imprisonment. Further, Basilga was ordered to pay a fine of P1M while Fiel, Cortes, Gregorio, Zuniega, Bandrang, and Zerna were each sentenced to pay a fine of P500,000.

Mario Granderos, Arnaldo Catubay, Guy Espinosa, Zerna, Fiel, Cortes, Bandrang and Gregorio were all found guilty beyond reasonable doubt of Violation of Section 11 of the law for illegal possession of dangerous drugs.

Granderos, Catubay, and Bandrang were sentenced to life imprisonment and each of them was ordered to pay a fine of P400,000.

On the other hand, Espinosa was sentenced to imprisonment of 12 years and one day and a fine of P300,000; Gregorio, Cortes and Zerna,  12 years and one day to 14 years imprisonment and a fine of P400,000; and Fiel, 12 years and one day to 15 years jail term  and a fine of P300,000.

The Regional Trial Court (RTC) of Borongan City, Eastern Samar promulgated the decision against Basilga; the RTC of Bohol, against Fiel; the RTC of Negros Oriental, against Cortes, Gregorio, Zuniega, Bandrang, Zerna, Granderos, and Catubay; and the RTC of Mandaue City, against Espinosa.

Aguirre said “the conviction of the accused is proof of the DOJ’s unwavering thrust to pursue drug cases, one of the three-headed hydra which the President ordered us to focus on.”