‘Ninja cops’ unmasked, charged with selling illegal drugs
The Department of Justice (DOJ) has charged in court four “ninja cops” for failure to account for two suitcases containing more than 50 kilograms of “shabu” (methamphetamine) from their “unreported” buy-bust operation in Pampanga.
Police officers who are part of an anti-drugs operating group but conduct illegal activities like reselling of the contraband have been dubbed as “ninja cops.”
In a 22-page resolution, charged for violation of Republic Act 9165 or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002 at an Angeles, Pampanga court were Police Chief Inspector Bienvenido P. Reydado, Police Senior Inspector Romel N. Dela Vega, Senior Police Officer 1 Rommel C. Raquipiso, Police Chief Inspector Arnulfo G. Ibañez and eight John Does. They are facing a case for misappropriation, misapplication and failure to account confiscated and seized dangerous drugs.
No bail was recommended for their temporary liberty.
The case stemmed from the complaint filed by the Criminal Investigation and Detection Unit through Senior Superintendent Albert Ignatius D. Ferro.
In the complaint, Reydado, who heads Pampanga’s Criminal Investigation and Detection Team, along with the other respondents failed to account for the two suitcases containing more than 50 kilograms of shabu confiscated in a buy-bust operation last Aug. 28, 2013.
Reydado’s group also failed to account for a Hyundai Starex and Toyota Camry seized in the same operation.
The complaint presented two witnesses who were part of Reydado’s team who both said that they were instructed by Reydado not to document the operation and not to process the arrested Chinese nationals.
Chinese nationals Yang Fang Ping and a certain Tony Sy Chan were eventually released, according to the witnesses who are also police officers.
During the implementation of the search warrant, authorities seized several unlicensed firearms, vehicles and a case worth P2.6-million at Reydado’s safehouse.
Among the vehicles seized inside Reydado’s safehouse were one blue Mitsubishi Montero, one Yamaha motorcycle and one unit of Yamaha Mio Sporty. Ferro said the vehicles are not in Reydado’s Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Networth (SALN).
Ferro added that upon verification from the PNP Crime Laboratory, Reydado’s group failed to turn over the confiscated drugs.
One of the witnesses against the respondents, SPO1 Oliver Padilla, said Reydado and his group conducted “personal” drug operations. Aside from the raid in Pampanga, he said there were also several raids conducted but Reydado’s group did not record or document the operations.
Padilla said he and another witness, SPO1 Martin Santiago, are not in good terms with Reydado’s group because they were being accused of tipping the drug operations of Reydado’s group to higher-ups. He said they feared that they would be dismissed by Reydado.
The accused denied the allegations. Reydado even said that the court already quashed or dismissed the search warrants issued against him.
But the DOJ, in its resolution, said the warrant quashed by the court was for illegal possession of firearms.
“To stress, the case before us is misappropriation, misapplication and failure to account dangerous drugs, not illegal possession of firearms and ammunition,” the DOJ said.
It added that the body of the crime is not the drugs but the positive identification in Padilla and Santiago’s testimonies.
“Despite the dubious legality of breaking into the Chinese men’s apartment without a search warrant, it is clear that the respondents were able to gain custodia legis [in the custody of the law] over the dangerous drugs seized from the suspects. They had the duty and obligation as police officers to right then and there conduct an inventory of the seized items, complete a chain of custody form and transmit the drug items through a turn over receipt to the PNP Crime Laboratory,” the resolution stated.
“But as testified by Santiago and Padilla, the respondents intentionally did not do so,” the DOJ added.
It also noted that while both Santiago and Padilla have an axe to grind for testifying against Reydado and his group, “whatever their intentions are for reporting the incident does not affect our probable cause determination and their credibility may still be subjected to cross examination during trial.”
The resolution is signed by Senior Assistant State Prosecutor Juan Pedro C. Navera and Senior Deputy State Prosecutor Richard Anthony D. Fadullon and approved by Prosecutor General Claro Arellano. IDL/rga
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