Administrative raps readied vs 8 cops in Edsa robbery
Victims in the gun-toting and assault incident along Epifanio delos Santos Avenue (Edsa) in Wack-Wack, Mandaluyong City last September 1, 2014 have their heads and faces covered during the press conference held at the Philippine National Police headquarters in Camp Crame. LYN RILLON
MANILA, Philippines— The Philippine National Police (PNP) is set to file administrative charges against the eight policemen involved in the alleged abduction and robbery on the Epifanio Delos Santos Avenue (Edsa) last week.
Chief Superintendent Reuben Theodore Sindac, spokesman of the PNP, said on Tuesday that Director General Alan Purisima has directed the Internal Affairs Service of the PNP to investigate the case.
“Administrative cases are being readied against them. Normally, a complainant is required before the IAS can act, but the IAS can investigate on its own initiative upon orders of the PNP chief,” Sindac said.
On Monday, Interior Secretary Manuel “Mar” Roxas II confirmed the arrest of Chief Inspector Joseph de Vera, deputy commander of the La Loma police station in Quezon City and Police Officer 2 Jonathan Rodriguez.
Other Quezon City policemen were also tagged in the crime, namely:
– Senior Inspector Oliver Villanueva,
-Senior Police Officer 1 Ramil Hachero,
-Police Officer 2 Weavin Masa,
-Police Officer 2 Mark de Paz,
-Police Officer 2 Jerome Datinguinoo,
-Police Officer 2 Ebonn Decatoria.
A dismissed police official identified as Inspector Marco Polo Estrera was also involved in the incident, the PNP said.
Only De Vera and Rodriguez, however, have been arrested by police.
Sindac said the six policemen failed to report for duty and went on absent without official leave (AWOL) after being tagged in the alleged abduction and robbery.
Asked about what would happen to the six policemen who have gone AWOL, Sindac said the PNP follows a protocol in dealing with AWOL cases, especially if these are linked to crimes perpetrated by policemen.
The police official said the process usually takes a month from the day they failed to report on duty or went AWOL.
After this, he said, the involved policemen would be “dropped from the rolls and removed from the police roster and payroll.”
“Going on AWOL means dereliction of duty. These policemen are tasked to perform certain duties which they no longer do because they are no longer report for work,” he said.
According to him, while there may be few misfit police officers in their ranks, the PNP has transformation programs for moral recovery and values formation for its police force in the country.
“With the public’s help, we need to weed out the scalawags so that the whole organization won’t be affected,” he said.
“Sometimes an individual’s personality is a factor. When they become policemen, they already have a distinct personality and character. We could only do so much to train them to be good cops, but it still boils down his character, “he added.
According to him, majority of the 148,000-strong police in the country is “still there doing their job with dedication and diligence.”
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