Espino faces probe over alleged payola
The Regional Internal Affairs Services in Central Visayas (RIAS-7) is looking into allegations that Police Regional Office-7 director Chief Supt. Jose Mario Espino is demanding at least P500,000 in weekly payola from illegal gambling operators in the region.
Espino denied the allegations and said he is not new to it. According to him, he had been used to such allegations since he was still a junior officer.
“Definitely the allegations are bereft of truth and figment of malicious imagination to discredit my leadership. Let our internal process handle it once proper complaint has been filed. I have been exposed to that kind of false accusations and end up the victor,” Espino said.
RIAS-7 chief Senior Supt. Jose Cerbas Carumba said they will investigate and file charges against Espino if there is evidence against him.
“Pag-merong ebidensya at may testigo ang mangyayari ay may kaso. Kung meron man yan, pag-usapan namin ng investigator, (and) an investigation will ensue,” Carumba told The FREEMAN.
Carumba said the investigation will be based on news reports and will also invite the members of the media to inquire more on their sources of information. Carumba, however, said that a complainant is needed for the case to prosper.
“Before going to investigation proper RIAS-7 need the newsclipping and will invite the columnist to our office for more inquiries and to identify the source of information. To prosper the case, kailangan din me complainant and evidences. Pagsaaming office mag-complain ang complainant, kami hahawak at mag-investigate,” Carumba explained.
A concerned citizen wrote a letter to journalist Bobby Nalzaro seeking for help to stop the alleged illegal activities of Espino. A copy of the three-page letter was furnished to Deputy House Speaker Gwendolyn Garcia.
Aside from the letter, there were also several text messages circulating in the past weeks about the alleged illegal activities and abuses of Espino and his wife.
The letter sender alleged Espino is collecting “protection money” from illegal gambling operators and had abused his power by relieving officers without valid grounds.
“Duha ka semana pa lamang gikan sa iyang pag-asumir isip Regional Director sa PNP Region-7, nagpa-meeting na dayon kini siya sa mga gambling financiers dinhi sa Metro Cebu pinaagi sa R2 (Regional Intelligence Division) og ni-demand kining si General Espino og P500,000 weekly allowance isip protection money,” the letter read.
“Sa atin ang Chief, PNP. Malakas tayo,” the letter quoted Espino as allegedly saying.
The letter sender added that confiscated illegal gambling machines like video karera are immediately released upon payment of P5,000.
The concerned citizen also claimed that several police officers had been relieved from their post on the behest of the general's wife.
In the letter, a police officer at Mambaling Police Station was reassigned as guard at the regional police headquarters allegedly because he did not oblige to the order of the wife.
Another incident mentioned in the letter was the relief of the Sogod town police chief for allegedly not doing anything about the complaint of Espino's wife against a restaurant. The wife allegedly did not like the taste of the food served to her and she wanted the police to take action against the restaurant.
Upon verification, The Freeman found out that Sogod has new police chief. Senior Inspector Dennis Mark Gulane Enargan assumed office last December 10. Former Sogod police chief Senior Insp. Efren Dela Cruz Diaz was reassigned as deputy station commander of Liloan Police Station.
Diaz, however, denied any knowledge about the alleged complaint of Espino's wife. According to Diaz, his reassignment to Liloan was part of the regular reshuffling of officers.
Espino lamented why members of the media are giving attention to what he described as “gossips” against him.
“Yes I am unfazed with accusation, as I said I have been exposed to that and said there still media practitioners na pinapatulan mga ganoon tsismis,” Espino said.