Crime wave only ‘hype,’ PNP claims

Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief Gen. Rodolfo Azurin Jr.  —Senate PRIB

Amid a spate of killings and kidnappings reported in recent weeks, the head of the Philippine National Police (PNP) on Thursday tried to ease people’s fears by pointing out that the crime trend in the country has been on a “steady decline” since 2010.

“There is no breakdown of law and order. The peace and order situation in the entire country is still manageable. There are crimes that are highlighted in different platforms but definitely, the crime rate is still low and we continuously aspire to bring it down further,” Police Gen. Rodolfo Azurin Jr., chief of the PNP, told reporters on Wednesday night.

The next day, he said crimes went down by 5.85 percent during the term of former President Rodrigo Duterte compared to his predecessor, former President Benigno S. Aquino III.

“In our analysis of crime data, it is apparent that the peace and order indicator—or the sum of both index and nonindex crimes—has decreased by 45.24 percent in [President Marcos’ administration],” Azurin said during his visit to Camp Olivas, the Central Luzon police headquarters, in San Fernando, Pampanga.

The Inquirer asked the PNP for a breakdown of the crime statistics cited by Azurin but had yet to receive a reply as of this writing.

A check of the PNP’s monthly data, however, showed that the total number of crimes (both index and nonindex) in the country almost doubled to 30,802 in July, a month after the new government took over, compared with 15,651 in June, Duterte’s last month in office.

The data also showed that the PNP solved more crimes in July at 86.13 percent (26,530), compared with 82.33 (12,886) percent in June. The police consider a case solved if the suspect has been identified, taken into police custody and charged before a court.

Azurin, meanwhile, attributed the uptick in reported crime cases to a “sensational surge in social media reporting” as he pointed out that many of the incidents cited had previously been reported and considered solved by the police.

“Other purported crime incidents posted on social media turned out to be either rehashed or completely false information. The PNP would like to do our part in educating our people to be more discerning of the true situation, particularly on crime matters, and be able to distinguish between crime hike and crime hype,” he added.

The PNP earlier dismissed rumors circulating on social media that a serial killer and gang members using a white van were behind several reported cases of murders and other crimes.

The reports alarmed even Interior Secretary Benhur Abalos and Mr. Marcos’ sister, Sen. Imee Marcos, with both asking authorities to look into the matter.

Still, Azurin acknowledged the positive impact of the posts on social media, saying they were proof of active public participation in reporting and solving crimes.

This proved true in the case of 15-year-old Princess Marie Dumantay, a rape victim whose lifeless body was found on a grassy roadside in Bustos, Bulacan, on Aug. 12, days after she went missing.

With the help of the public, the police arrested the suspect, Gaspar Maneja Jr., alias Jose Francisco Santos, on Aug. 18 in Pamplona, Camarines Sur.

Information provided by witnesses, in addition to the footage taken from a closed-circuit television camera, also led to the capture of the primary suspect in the Aug. 22 rape-slay of 29-year-old Lovely Ann Villagomez in Malabon City. Jaemark Reyes, a construction worker, was arrested in Malolos City, Bulacan, the next day.

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