January 24, 2025
CEBU CITY – Hero dog Bayani proved a hero indeed when he led authorities to the discovery of 25 kilos of illegal drugs hidden by a mother and son who arrived at the Cebu City sea port on early Thursday morning, January 23.
Bayani, a member of the K-9 unit of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency in Central Visayas (PDEA-7), has been hailed by the public as a hero for leading authorities to the illegal drugs worth P170 million.
At around 7:30 a.m. on Thursday, alias “Edward,” 41, and his mother alias “Edna,” 63, arrived at the Pier 4 in Cebu City onboard a car. They were traveling from Masbate.
Edward works as a truck driver and is a resident of Isabel, Leyte while his mother lives in Barangay Ermita, Cebu City.
On the same day, personnel of the PDEA-7 Seaport Interdiction Unit Cebu conducted a routine narcotic K9 inspection at the port.
Also with them were agents of the Naval Forces Central, PRO-7 Regional Police Drug Enforcement Unit, PNP Drug Enforcement Group, PNP Maritime Group, Philippine Coast Guard, Cebu Port Authority Police, Bureau of Customs, and Mabolo Police Station.
The suspects were stopped and detained after they reportedly avoided the inspection.
During the inspection, hero dog Bayani successfully detected suspicious items inside a big brown carton box placed inside the vehicle.
After it was opened, authorities found 25 packs of suspected shabu weighing around 25 kilograms inside. It had an estimated average market value of P170 million.
One of the suspects claimed that they were only tasked to transport the vehicle to Cebu City from Masbate and were unaware it contained illegal drugs. She also denied knowing the person who instructed them to deliver the vehicle.
As of this writing, charges for the sale of illegal drugs are being readied against the mother and son.
Social media users were quick to praise “Bayani,” a Belgian Malinois, as a hero after news of the successful apprehension in Cebu City spread online.
One user commented, “This dog saved a lot of Filipino citizens from the chaos of drugs…Good job doggie. You deserve a reward.”
Another quipped, “Bravo K9 Bayani, medal for you!”