No ‘e-scape’ with ‘e-warrant’ in place

PNP Director General Nicanor A. Bartolome

No more “e-scape” for wanted persons, hopefully.

The Philippine National Police (PNP) is set to implement this year what it calls an “e-warrant,” or electronic warrant system, wherein officers may access a database of court-issued arrest orders from any point in the country to check if a suspicious character is hiding from the law.

“Meaning, if you are in Mindanao and you think there is a warrant of arrest for a suspect (in connection with a crime) that occurred in Luzon, you may access (the database) even if you are far from the place of the incident,” PNP Director General Nicanor A. Bartolome said in a briefing.

On top of the e-warrant system, the PNP is also planning to put up an electronic rogue database, or “e-rogue,” basically an online photo gallery of suspects for easy reference by investigators, according to the PNP chief.

The e-warrant and e-rogue systems are in line with the PNP’s efforts to modernize and use technology to improve crime solution and teach new skills to its 140,000-strong force.

‘E-blotter’

The PNP earlier put in place the “e-blotter,” or electronic blotter system, wherein daily log entries at local police stations are encoded for easy transmission to headquarters and other units.

“We will specialize in crime investigation,” Bartolome told reporters at Camp Crame on Monday. “We will enhance the skills of our personnel and we will develop their competencies.”

Under the e-warrant system, police officers who could confirm the existence of an arrest warrant on a person may just print out the document and serve it on the subject, explained PNP spokesperson Chief Superintendent Agrimero Cruz Jr.

“It will make it simpler for the police to catch wanted criminals this way,” Cruz said.

Yearend report

Also at the same briefing, Bartolome reported that crime volume in the country dropped by 23.36 percent from January to Dec. 15, 2011, compared to the same period the year before.

Crimes against persons (like murder, homicide and rape) decreased by 30.42 percent, while crimes against property (theft and robbery) fell by 17.88 percent, the PNP chief said.

The PNP’s crime solution efficiency—the percentage of cases where at least one suspect is arrested—rose by 12.45 percent last year compared to 2010, he added.