The number of suspected drug personalities killed under President Duterte’s war against illegal drugs is set to breach the 3,000 mark barely three months after it started in July.
Records of the Philippine National Police showed that 2,956 persons have been killed as of yesterday morning, composed of those who were gunned down in legitimate police operations and by vigilante groups and other unidentified assailants.
Senior Supt. Dionardo Carlos, PNP spokesperson, said 1,466 persons were killed in 17,389 police operations conducted across the country from July 1 to yesterday morning, the latest of which was four suspected drug personalities killed in Quezon City Friday.
The police operations, Carlos said, also resulted in the arrest of 16,025 suspected drug pushers and users.
“On the number of those who surrendered, it is now at 709,527 wherein 52,568 of them are suspected drug pushers while the rest are suspected drug users,” said Carlos, quoting data from various police regional offices.
Metro Manila, Central Luzon, and Calabarzon or Region 4-A (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, and Quezon) are the top regions with high number of fatalities and arrested.
A separate report disclosed that 1,490 persons killed are under what the PNP referred to as Death Under Investigation or DUI.
Fatalities under the DUI include those whose cadavers were discovered with cardboards stating that they were either pushers or users who must be killed. (Aaron B. Recuenco)