3 get life for P3.4-M shabu

TANAUAN CITY, Batangas — Three Chinese nationals have been sentenced to life imprisonment for selling more than P3.4 million worth of shabu in Batangas, ending a case that began with a buy-bust operation and a two-hour pursuit in 2024.

The Regional Trial Court Branch 83 in Tanauan City found A Ming, also known as “Koi” and “Xia Ting Ming”; Yan Xing Xue, alias “Xue Yan Xing”; and Ko Xiao Ya, alias “Yu Ali,” guilty beyond reasonable doubt of selling 502.6 grams of shabu valued at P3,417,680.

In its 35-page decision dated August 17, the court sentenced each of the three to life imprisonment and ordered them to pay a P500,000 fine, according to the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA).

Ko was separately found guilty of using dangerous drugs and ordered to undergo six months of rehabilitation at a government facility.

The convictions stemmed from a PDEA Regional Office IV-A buy-bust operation on 2 May 2024, at a subdivision in Barangay Santiago, Malvar.