Pampanga town PNP execs relieved over ‘tanim-droga’
Two police officials of a town in Pampanga were relieved from their posts on Friday amid allegations that some of their men made arrests by planting drugs as evidence or “tanim-droga.”
Superintendent Juritz Rara, Mabalacat police chief, and Senior Inspector Melvin Florida Jr., intelligence unit commander, were relieved under the principle of command responsibility. They were transferred to the provincial administrative holding center pending the result of an investigation.
Chief Superintendent Aaron Aquino, Central Luzon police director, earlier relieved Chief Inspector Sonia Alvarez, Bacolor police chief; Chief Inspector Philip Pineda, drug enforcement unit head; Police Officers 2 Rethmel Santos and Mark dela Torre as well as eight agents of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency over the same allegations.
A report over ABS-CBN quoted several drug suspects as saying that policemen planted the shabu that were recovered from them.
One of supposed victims claimed he was arrested by policemen wearing civilian clothes while on his way to buy medicine for his child.
Aquino assured the public that the allegations against his men are being investigated.
“I assure you…I will continue to weed out hoodlums and punish the undisciplined… through punitive sanctions set forth in our rules and regulations,” he said in a statement.
Lack of evidence
In a related development, s the Eastern Visayas police recommended the dismissal of the administrative cases filed against 27 policemen with alleged links to the Espinosa drug ring for lack of evidence.
Superintendent Rogelio Almedilla said they submitted their report to Chief Superintendent Elmer Beltejar, Eastern Visayas police chief, for review.
Chief Inspector Jovi Espenido, Albuera police chief, filed administrative charges against Superintendents Reynaldo Turla, Neil Montano, Wilfredo Abordo and Jonathan Camacho; Senior Inspectors Rio Tan, Eufracio Javines, Berniede Magamay and Benjamin Lodo as well as 19 other policemen.
Almedilla said the complaints against the police officers were based only on the affidavit of slain Albuera mayor Rolando Espinosa Sr., whose son Kerwin is the alleged leader of the Espinosa drug ring.
2 drug suspects slain
Meanwhile, two more drug suspects were killed in Cavite and Laguna on Friday.
An alias July allegedly engaged anti-drug operatives in a shootout in Barangay Pulong Santa Cruz, Sta. Rosa City at around 2:15 p.m.
Rolando Loyola was found dead in Barangay Paliparan 3, Dasmariñas City. The fatality was on the drug watchlist, according to a police report.
In Agusan del Norte, five sachets of shabu with an estimated street value of almost P1.2 million were confiscated from Gelmar Gozon, alias Kulot, in Barangay Cabinet, Cabadbaran City yesterday.