Law enforcers uproot P6-M worth of marijuana plants in Agusan del Sur

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July 7, 2026 | 6:15pm

COTABATO CITY — Soldiers, policemen and agents of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency 13 jointly uprooted 23,431 marijuana shrubs worth P6 million in a joint operation in Barangay Kasapa, Loreto town, Agusan del Sur, on Saturday, July 4.

Local executives in Agusan del Sur told reporters on Monday, July 6, that the PDEA 13, units of the Agusan del Sur Provincial Police Office, and the 60th Infantry Battalion of the Army’s 10th Infantry Division conducted the operation after villagers and traditional community leaders in Loreto reported discovering a marijuana farm in Sitio Bunlak, Barangay Kasapa, in the municipality.

Among those who provided information about the two-hectare marijuana farm were former members of the now-defunct New People’s Army, who had returned to the fold in recent years and are now working as farmers in different barangays in Loreto and in nearby towns.

Army Major Gen. Alvin Luzon, commander of the 10th ID, said on Monday that personnel from their 60th IB, PDEA 13 agents and operatives and forensic experts from different units of PRO 13 and the Agusan del Sur provincial police command uprooted 23,431 marijuana shrubs during the operation, with assistance from municipal and barangay officials.

Armed men guarding the marijuana farm managed to flee after noticing soldiers, policemen and PDEA 13 agents approaching their location from two directions.

Local executives and members of the multi-sector Agusan del Sur Provincial Peace and Order Council separately told reporters that PDEA 13 agents, police officers and soldiers involved in the operation immediately set fire to the uprooted marijuana shrubs after collecting samples to be used as evidence in prosecuting those behind their propagation.