COP NABBED FOR SNIFFING SHABU

KORONADAL CITY -- All the policemen in Surallah, South Cotabato will
be subjected to a drug test following the arrest on Friday midnight of
a police officer allegedly in the act of sniffing shabu, an official
said Saturday.

Senior Insp. Michael Lebanan, Surallah police chief, said they caught
Police Officer 1 Roel Austria and Henry Trinidad in the house of a
policeman in Barangay General Paulino Santos.

Austria has been the subject of an arrest order issued by South
Cotabato police director Romeo Rufino for taking an absence without
official leave (AWOL) from his post in Surallah town, Lebanan said.

"Our purpose was to arrest him [Austria] because he went on AWOL.
Incidentally, we caught them holding a pot session," Lebanan, who is
the immediate superior of Austria, said.

Seized from the suspects were five sachets of alleged shabu and drug
paraphernalia.

According to Lebanan, Austria had not reported to work even before the
May 10 elections, prompting the police provincial office to issue an
order for his arrest.

Austria was assigned to the Surallah police command in December last
year.

Quidilla said that Austria and his companion are now detained at the
city police jail.

Lebanan said the administrative case, for not reporting to work, would
be formally endorsed to the police Provincial Internal Affairs Service.

He added they would subject Austria to a drug test prior to the
possible filing of a criminal case against him for alleged drug use,
in accordance with Republic Act 9165, otherwise known as the
Comprehensive Drug Act of 2002.