Troubled cop stays on roof for 4 hours

Hours after a man scaled a 40-foot billboard when his girlfriend refused to marry him, a policeman climbed to the roof of a house on Wednesday night in Quezon City and refused to come down, causing a commotion in the neighborhood.

But PO2 Randy Barrameda of the Talipapa police station claimed he had no intention of jumping, saying he just wanted time to think, according to his immediate superior Supt. Michael Macapagal.

After staying for four hours on the roof and a pep talk from his fellow lawmen, Barrameda eventually came down from the roof of the house on San Joaquin Street, San Francisco del Monte.

He was immediately taken into custody and later underwent inquest proceedings for alarm and scandal, said case investigator PO2 Alvin Quisumbing.

Assistant City Prosecutor Ma. Luz Coles, however, recommended that the case be further investigated as she noted that there were no witnesses to show that the policeman had intended to disturb the peace in the neighborhood.

Operatives of the Masambong police station were first alerted to the incident at 6 p.m. on Wednesday when a resident complained about a man staying on the roof of the house owned by Nene Pasco.

The man later turned out to be Barrameda, 36, a member of the Talipapa police station. After learning that the man was from his police station, Macapagal sent a team led by Chief Insp. Jeffrey Bilaro to talk some sense into Barrameda.

Barrameda, who lives in San Jose del Monte, Bulacan, did not appear to be drunk during the incident.

Macapagal said the policeman had been on sick leave for the past days due to complications from diabetes.

“He told Bilaro that he has some personal problems and that he went up to the roof to be alone. He seemed relaxed and not at all agitated,” he added.

Barrameda’s superiors and fellow policemen at the Talipapa police station said they were unaware of his problems although Macapagal said the policeman had been suffering from diabetes for years.