2 cops in drug matrix face probe

The Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) will investigate and check the profile of two police officers included in the matrix of the drug group of Rustico Ygot, whom the police identified as the lovers of “shabu queen” Jocelyn Encila.

CCPO Deputy Director for Operations Lorenzo Batuan said these suspected narco-cops possibly served as protectors of Encila.

He said they will subject the two officers to a lifestyle check.

A third cop who was believed to have had an affair with Encila was relieved from a police station under CCPO and was transferred to the Police Regional Office 7 for an investigation. He holds the rank of PO3 and used to be a team leader.

The officer had explained his side, but Batuan did not provide further details.

Batuan said the police officers will be charged with administrative and criminal complaints if the investigation proves that they worked for Encila, who was caught in a drug bust in Barangay Casili, Consolacion on March 3. The operation yielded 10 kilos of “shabu” worth P68 million.

The punishment for a police officer who engages in drug trafficking is dismissal from service, according to Batuan.

For his part, Cebu Provincial Police Office Director Manuel Abrugena said they will assist the CCPO in the investigation and in the search for one of the two police officers, who did not report for duty after he was identified as Encila’s current boyfriend.

The missing police officer reportedly owns two houses in Consolacion and Compostela, a farm in Barangay Basak, Cebu City and luxury cars.

Meanwhile, Abrugena said there is a possibility that members of the Parojinog robbery and drug group have arrived in Cebu Province.

He said they are validating intelligence reports about the arrival of Ozamiz City-based gang members who reportedly target commercial establishments. CPPO will coordinate with their counterparts in Mindanao.

The police official said there is also a possibility that the group has joined forces with the drug ring of self-confessed drug lord Franz Sabalones.

Abrugena said a member of the Parojinog family left Ozamiz City and transferred to Cebu, but he did not divulge the person’s name.

“What we see right now is that they are in the process of gathering or saving money for big operations, not necessarily here in Cebu island because the group often transfers from one place to another,” he said.