By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga

Six Hinoba-an municipal police station officers were among the 17 law enforcement agents from across the Western Visayas conferred with medals earlier this week at Camp Martin Delgado in Iloilo City.

The recipients included Hinoba-an municipal police chief, Police Senior Inspector Leomel Gonzaga; Police Officer 3 (PO3) PO3 Greeki Cayao; and PO2s  Joe Dennis Santes, MacGregor Carnazo, John Earl Bravo, and Ryan Togonon, who were all conferred the Medalya ng Kagalingan following the October arrest of Arturo Balume, Sr., the leader of the Balume drug group, based in San Rafael, Iloilo.

Cops also managed to capture the drug lord’s son, Arturo Balume II.

The elder Balume earlier affirmed links with former Sara Mayor Neptali Salcedo and incumbent Estancia Mayor Rene Cordero and was wanted by the Iloilo Police Provincial Office for the murders of Ronaldo Estandarte and Roberto Magarso, bodyguards for Cordero’s opponent in the previous mayoral election, Melina Requinto.

Balume Sr. currently faces two counts of murder; while his son faces illegal possession of firearms charges and violations to RA 9165, or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002./DGB, WDJ