Awol cop who swindled police official nabbed in Marikina

Authorities have apprehended a dismissed police officer in Marikina City for allegedly attempting to swindle a police official, the Quezon City Police District (QCPD) revealed on Wednesday.

Former police inspector Jay-are Olaguera, who was sacked after he went on absence without leave (awol) in 2010, was arrested in Barangay Nangka on Tuesday, March 27 in an entrapment operation by the Quezon City Police District Special Operations Unit (DSOU).

“The suspect was arrested after Police Supt. Roland Bulalacao, assigned in Camp Crame, sought assistance from the DSOU after being swindled by the suspect,” QCPD Chief Supt. Guillermo Eleazar said in a statement.

Eleazar said that on Sunday, March 25, Bulalacao received a text message from Olaguera, who had posed as “Police Supt. Benito Ramos” and claimed to be his upperclassman at the Philippine National Police Academy.

The suspect, Eleazar said, texted Bulalacao again on Monday, March 26, and asked if he could transfer money into his account. He claimed that the money was intended for a certain “PCI Ortega” who was supposedly assigned in Compostela Valley.

“Olaguera was persistent in texting and following up on Police Supt. Bulalacao if he had already sent the money amounting to P3,000 through Smart Money Padala as agreed upon,” Eleazar said.

“Bulalacao doubted the text sender’s identity, sought the assistance of QCPD DSOU which found out that the money he sent was to be claimed in Marikina City because of the reference number. An entrapment was then set,” he said.

During the entrapment operation, police operatives found out that the money was claimed by Olaguera’s eight-year-old daughter.

“The operatives followed Olaguera’s daughter to their residence where the suspect was arrested. Confiscated from him were two genuine one thousand peso bills, two genuine five hundred peso bills and an android cellphone used in the text conversation,” Eleazar said.

Charges of swindling and or estafa, violation of the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012, as well as violation of Special Protection of Children against Abuse, Exploitation and Discrimination Act would be filed against the suspect and his wife.

“Investigators also found out that Olaguera’s wife, Sait Escarcita Olaguera, was also arrested sometime in 2017 for the same modus and for usurpation of authority after she introduced herself as a Police Chief Inspector in Taguig City,” Eleazar said. /je