Shooting ensues after Baguio City drug deal gone awry

Art Dumlao — November 27, 2024

Shooting ensues after Baguio City drug deal gone awry 

BAGUIO CITY (November 25, 2024) -- A supposed drug deal, but had gone awry ensued into shooting incident that killed Lucas Agasen Maraneg, 29, from Pinsao Pilot barangay here, and wounding his drug trade partner Sunday night at Happy Homes, Barangay Ferdinand, here.

 

Police found out that Maraneg aboard an undescribed vehicle with Gino Castillo Banta was stalled by the roadside for engine overheat, when another vehicle driven by Michael Garcia rushed towards them and began shooting.

 

Maraneg died at the hospital after suffering from multiple gunshot wounds, while Banta was hurt.

 

Unimpeacheable sources from the anti-drug agency PDEA said, the shooting most likely was a drug deal gone wrong between Garcia, Maraneg and Banta.

 

Garcia, from Adiwang, Green Valley barangay, here, who is now being hunted by the police, is reportedly a high-stakes drug dealer in Baguio. 

While Banta was caught several months ago along Suello Subdivision, here, in a drug sting operation. Banta was caught with his LTO Flying Squad traffic enforcer uniform on.

 

The same sources claimed that Garcia and Banta are being monitored for their huge drug deals in the city.

Point of Order

By Noly Balatero • June 3, 2026
It is time to call to task our legislators to buckle down to brass tacks and do what their mandate is crystal clear.
Lately, a young woman named Janine found her way into my idle moments while scrolling social media s

Janine

By Joel D. Panes • June 3, 2026
Lately, a young woman named Janine found her way into my idle moments while scrolling social media sites. The song was originally hers, not found among the OPM classics in the karaoke menu. At first, her voice - raw, shrieking, almost unhinged - was not interesting. The next day, the lyrics she delivered pierced throug

YouTube to start automatically labeling some AI-generated videos

By Andy Ignacio • May 27, 2026
YouTube will in future automatically detect AI-generated content and flag the information to viewers on its platform, the Google-owned company said on Wednesday.