Pubdate: Fri, 28 Oct 2005
Source: Visayan Daily Star (Philippines)
Copyright: 2005 Visayan Daily Star
Contact:  http://www.visayandailystar.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1688
Author: Carla Gomez
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/meth.htm (Methamphetamine)

SHABU QUEEN METED DOUBLE LIFE SENTENCE

A 74-year-old woman was sentenced yesterday to two counts of life
imprisonment for illegal possession and sale of shabu, and to two
additional years in jail for four other charges.

Sentenced by Bacolod Regional Trial Court Judge Edgardo de los Santos
was Pilar Buenafe Ruiz, also known as Bacolod's "shabu queen" who was
found guilty in six cases.

Ruiz was sentenced to life imprisonment in Criminal Case 03-24735 for
having 193.67 grams of shabu in her possession when she was
apprehended, and in Criminal Case 03-24736 for the sale of 22.88 grams
of shabu to a police poseur-buyer in violation of Republic Act 9165 or
the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.

Both incidents took place on April 2, 2003.

She was also ordered to pay a fine of P500,000 for each
case.

On re-arraignment Ruiz pleaded guilty to both offenses, the judge
said.

The prosecution established that on April 2, 2003 Senior Inspector
Clarence Dongail conducted a buy-bust operation, with PO2 Allen
Winston Hulleza acting as police poseur-buyer, after receiving
information from a police "asset" that Ruiz was engaged in selling
shabu, the judge said.

Buy-Bust

At about 8 p.m. of April 2 the buy-bust operation took place at the
corner of Burgos-Lopez Jaena streets, Bacolod City, during which
Hulleza was able to buy from Ruiz five packs of shabu totaling 22.8
grams, which, at the time, was valued at P6,000 per pack, the judge
added.

Also recovered from Ruiz were four more big plastic bags of shabu with
a total weight of 193.67 grams, the judge said.

In four other cases of violation of Republic Act 6425 or the
Anti-Dangerous Drugs Act of 1972, where Ruiz also pleaded guilty, she
was meted six months and one day jail terms for each count.

They are Criminal Case 01-22437 for possession of .57 gram of shabu on
June 5, 2001, Criminal Case 02-23211 wherein she was caught with 7.17
grams of shabu on Nov., 7, 2001, Criminal Case 02-23287 for having
23.67 grams of shabu on Feb 1, 2002, and in Criminal Case 03-24499 for
possession of .14 gram of shabu on June 10, 2002, all in Bacolod City.

De los Santos ordered that the shabu recovered from Ruiz in the six
cases be forfeited in favor of the government and turned over to the
Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency for disposal.

Death Penalty Avoided

RA 9165 repealed RA 6425 and raised the penalty for possession of
shabu, de los Santos told the DAILY STAR, thus the life sentences for
two cases filed against Ruiz since the crimes for which they were
imposed occurred after the new law was in place.

De los Santos said that if Ruiz had not pleaded guilty, she could have
faced the ultimate penalty of death for the two cases. Ruiz is facing
seven other drug cases before the Bacolod RTC of which she told
ABS-CBN she intends to plead guilty in the hope of availing of
executive clemency.

She said she was innocent as it was her son, Joselito Pilar, who died
in a motorcycle accident on Oct. 5, 2002 who was the one responsible
for pushing drugs. 
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