Phnom Penh—Unless they are convicted in court, the police officers who killed Albuera Mayor Rolando Espinosa would continue to have the President’s support.
President Duterte noted that the National Bureau of Investigation found that the killing of Espinosa during a police raid on his jail cell was murder. Espinosa had been linked to the illegal drug trade prior to his death.
“Well, I said unless there is a case filed and convicted, I would still believe the police and even the military for that matter,” Mr. Duterte told some 1,000 Filipinos as he explained and defended his administration’s crackdown on illegal narcotics.
He also said his order to Philippine National Police Ronald dela Rosa to keep Supt. Marvin Macos in his position as head of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group in Region 8 had nothing to do with the raid on Espinosa’s cell that had led to his death.
Marcos had supervised the fatal operation.
His only reason for asking Dela Rosa to keep Marcos in his post was so that he could keep tabs on his activities to learn of the extent of his alleged involvement in the illegal drug trade, the President said.