Law enforcers raid 4-ha marijuana farm in Agusan del Sur

Police, army, and Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) personnel raided a four hectare marijuana plantation in Loreto, Agusan del Sur Thursday evening. As of Saturday, they are still uprooting the full-grown shrubs. No arrests were made. The raid capped a month of surveillance and intelligence operations, according to the Philippine National Police (PNP) in Butuan, Caraga region. PNP Caraga said that Agusan del Sur residents informed them that there was a marijuana plantation in Sitio Mactan, Barangay Kasapa 1 in the town of Loreto. The raiding team said they were unable to determine who owns the four-hectare property. Uprooting of the marijuana plants has taken almost three days because, according to PNP Caraga, the raiding team is short on manpower for the task. They also have to inventory every shrub of the Cannabis sativa —marijuana's scientific name— they pull up from the ground. Operatives of the 13th Regional Public Safety Battalion of the PNP, the 402nd Infantry Brigade of the Philippine Army, PDEA agents, and local officials comprised the raiding team. — ELR/TJD, GMA News