ORIENTAL MINDORO, Philippines – Three drug personalities identified as High-Value Targets (HVTs) were arrested and dismantled a drug den in Barangay Matungao, Socorro, Oriental Mindoro, on November 5, 2025.

The operation was carried out through the combined efforts of Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) Oriental Mindoro Provincial Office, PDEA MIMAROPA Regional Special Enforcement Team (RSET), PDEA Calapan Seaport Interdiction Unit (SUI), Socorro Municipal Police Station (MPS), Regional Drug Enforcement Unit (RDEU), and Provincial Drug Enforcement Unit (PDEU).

Arrested during the operation were identified as alias Jerrel, 32 years old, male, jobless; alias Marlon, 33 years old, male, jobless; and alias Joy, 33 years old, female, jobless, all are residents of Barangay Matungao, Socorro.

Confiscated from the suspects were more or less eight grams of suspected shabu with an estimated standard value of ₱54,400.00, along with other drug paraphernalia.

The arrested individuals are facing charges for violation of Sections 5, 6, 7, 11, and 12, Article II of Republic Act 9165, otherwise known as the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.

PDEA MIMAROPA, in close coordination with other law enforcement agencies and counterparts, remains steadfast in its intensified campaign against illegal drugs in line with the government’s goal of achieving a drug-cleared MIMAROPA Region.