‘Chill lang’: Smiling photo of arrested suspected drug courier amuses Filipinos

July 29, 2022 - 11:04 AM
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Smiling suspect
Melvin Guliman Arnado is arrested in a buy-bust operation conducted by the police in Cebu City in this photo uploaded by The Freeman on Facebook on July 25, 2022. (The Freeman/Romeo Marantal)

It’s not every day that you see a smiling suspect.

A photo of a 26-year-old suspected drug courier who was caught by the authorities amused some Filipinos on social media. They noticed his facial expression after being arrested in a buy-bust operation.

The Freeman on Monday reported that Melvin Guliman Arnado was caught with 500 grams of crystal meth or “shabu” worth P3,4 million.

He was arrested after the Philippine National Police Drug Enforcement Group and Special Operation Unit-7 conducted its operation along A. Soriano St. in Sitio Ponce 1, Barangay Carreta, Cebu City.

A picture of Arnado was uploaded on the regional newspaper’s Facebook page, which featured him smiling while handcuffed.

It has reached viral status, raking in 19,000 likes and laughing reactions, 4,600 comments, and 10,000 shares on the social networking platform.

Some of the comments read:

“Chill lang ano po (grinning face emoji). Lakas po siguro ng backer nito,” a Facebook user wrote.

“Bakit kaya siya nakangiti?” another online user commented.

“Tawanan mo iyong problema,” a different Pinoy wrote with laughing-with-tears emojis.

“Buti pa si kuya, halatang masaya. Ganyan dapat, kahit anong dumating na pagsubok sa buhay, dapat happy lang,” another Facebook user said with the same emoji.

“Dream come true… congrats… proud na proud sa’yo ngayon pamilya mo, nasa news ka na,” exclaimed a different Pinoy.

Photos of arrested individuals usually have somber or unsmiling faces. It is rare that someone smiles or poses for the camera.