■ CIDG 7 OPERATIVES FACE PROBE FOR ALLEGED PLANTING OF ILLEGAL DRUGS

Wife of a man arrested for drug possession in 2016 accused CIDG 7 operatives of planting evidence against her husband

Operatives of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) 7 are under investigation by the National Police Commission (Napolcom) 7 for an alleged bogus buy-bust involving a man in Barangay Capitol Site in Cebu City. The wife of the unidentified subject of the buy-bust filed the complaints against the policemen before the Napolcom 7 last Jan. 19. She alleged that here was no buybust and that the illegal drugs were planted as evidence against her husband. Atty. Risty Sibay of the Napolcom 7 would not name the respondents pending the pre-charge investigation.

President Rodrigo Duterte recently ordered the suspension of the PNP anti-illegal drug campaign’s Oplan Tokhang, and designated the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency to lead the war on drugs.

The National Police Commission (Napolcom) 7 is investigating a complaint against the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) 7 for conducting an allegedly bogus drug buy-bust last year.

Perlita M. Ramos filed the complaint against the police’s national support unit, insisting that the operatives “planted” the drugs against her husband.

“She alleged that there was no buy-bust that happened and that the operatives ‘planted’ drugs on her husband’s possession,” Atty. Risty Sibay of the Napolcom 7 told SunStar Cebu.

Through a letter, Ramos’s complaint was first sent to the Police Regional Office 7, which endorsed the matter to the Napolcom 7.

The complaint was filed before the Napolcom 7 on Jan. 19.

Sibay said that Ramos submitted, as part of her evidence to support the complaint, a USB containing a footage captured by a closed-circuit television camera that allegedly showed what transpired during the drug-bust near Barangay Capitol in Cebu City.

“I already had it traced because I thought that it was the video that was shown in the Senate but it was not. She already provided clippings, which she printed that proved her point,” said Sibay.

Asked if this was the “tokha- ng for ransom” case that Senator Panfilo Lacson relayed to Police Regional Director (PRO) 7 Noli Taliño, Sibay said it was not.

“The senator said that it (tokhang for ransom) involved foreigners. But this involved a local person, so this is not the one,” Sibay said in vernacular.

According to Ramos’ affidavit, there were more than three CIDG 7 operatives conducted the anti-illegal drug operation against her husband.

The Napolcom 7 is withholding the names of the CIDG 7 personnel pending the result of the pre-charged investigation. Sibay said they will soon be invited for questioning and to give them the opportunity to give their side on the allegation.

Sibay said if the Napolcom 7 found probable cause to charge the CIDG 7 operatives, an administrative case for grave misconduct may be filed against them.

Meanwhile, the Philippine National Police (PNP) conducted consultation workshops to its regional offices in Western Visayas (Region 6), Central Visayas (Region 7), Eastern Visayas (Region 8) and Negros Island Region (Region 18).

Headed by Deputy Chief PNP for Administration, Police Deputy Director General Francisco Uyami Jr., the workshop aims to regain the trust of the public to the police through their re-organization and modernization plan in the Visayas cluster amid the “tokhang for ransom” controversy. /