Bulacan town cop chief jailed for extortion

BOCAUE, Bulacan – The chief of police of this Bulacan town was arrested for extortion in an entrapment operation on Saturday, following a complaint by a relative of an arrested drug suspect.

Supt. Jowen Dela Cruz was caught with an iPhone X which he allegedly demanded from the sister of a suspect detained at the Bocaue municipal jail.

Supt. Joel Estaris, deputy commander of the Police Counter-Intelligence Task Force (CITF), led the operation against Dela Cruz at the Bocaue police station at 12:07 a.m.

The suspect’s sister reached out to the CITF when told that she would need to hand over the P75,000-device in exchange for the suspect’s release, Estaris said.

Estaris said the complainant, who is based in Tarlac province, also claimed that a vehicle Dela Cruz had been using belonged to her relative.

At posting time, Dela Cruz had yet to issue a statement about the charges.

The police seized two more cars and two motorcycles from Dela Cruz, who is also being investigated for his alleged link to car thieves, Estaris said.

Dela Cruz has been detained by the CITF at the national police headquarters in Camp Crame.

Senior Supt. Romeo Caramat, former Bulacan director, heads the CITF.