The Philippine National Police (PNP) on Tuesday revealed that the retired police general linked to the mishandling of a P6.7-billion drug haul in 2022 surrendered to authorities.

In a statement, PNP spokesperson Brig. Gen. Jean Fajardo said the arrest warrant was served to Lt. Gen. Benjamin Santos Jr. (ret.), former PNP deputy chief for operations, shortly after he arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) at 4:48 a.m. Tuesday.

“He surrendered to the CIDG (Criminal Investigation and Detection Group) and he underwent normal booking procedures,” Fajardo said, adding that Santos was released around 9:12 a.m. after posting P200,000 bail.

Santos was among 29 former and active PNP members ordered arrested by a Manila court over the bungled anti-drug operation.

Earlier, Santos last week sent surrender feelers, according to Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) chief Brig. Gen. Nicolas Torre III.“Actually, surrender feelers and request for assistance in posting bail,” Torre said. “He arrived this morning, he was met by PNP personnel at the airport, and together with his lawyer, he voluntarily surrendered to RTC Branch 44 in Manila, and they facilitated the posting of the bail. He already has a release order and he is temporarily a free man.”

Torre added that only seven of the 29 wanted police officers remain at large, including former Drug Enforcement Group chief Brig. Gen. Narciso Domingo, who posted a 16-minute video on his Facebook account 31 January, urging President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to look into their case.

“We are in the process of locating Gen. Domingo. We have formed tracker teams to find him. Actually, not only Gen. Domingo but the six others. So there are seven who remain at large,” Torre said.

“They already have a Hold Departure Order from the court, so immigration will block their exit if they attempt to leave the country,” he added.

To recall, Domingo supervised the October 2022 operation that led to the confiscation of 990 kg of shabu and the arrest of a rogue anti-narcotics officer, dismissed S/Sgt. Rodolfo Mayo Jr.

A Manila court has ordered the arrest of 29 police officers for violation of Section 92 of the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002, which pertains to the bungling of the prosecution of drug cases, a bailable offense.

A separate Manila court issued a warrant for the officers’ arrest for violation of Section 29 of the anti-drug law, which is planting of evidence, a non-bailable offense. This second warrant complicates the situation for the remaining at-large officers. While Santos was able to post bail for the Section 92 violation, he, and the others, still face the non-bailable charge under Section 29.

The drug haul, which involved a massive quantity of “shabu,” has been a source of significant controversy and internal investigation within the PNP.