Reconsideration of ruling on cop's extort case sought

The National Bureau of Investigation will be filing today a motion for reconsideration on the ruling of the city prosecutor's office dismissing the bribery complaint against PO2 Robert Cuyos.

NBI-7 chief Meinrado Delemos told The FREEMAN there was nothing on record that refuted the allegations against Cuyos nor was there anything to prove that he was not part of the alleged bribery.

Delemos contended that the prosecutor's office could have required Cuyos to submit a counter-affidavit to refute the allegations and not dismiss the case merely on what documents were available.

On the other hand, Councilor Augustus "Jun" Pe Jr. said charge should be pressed against PO2 Robert Cuyos to the Cebu City Police Office-Drug Enforcement Unit, as he strongly believes the latter was part in the extortion try of two other policemen.

According to Pe, it was just Cuyos' alibi that he was merely accommodating PO1 Leo Batigalao to ride in his motorcycle at the time of their arrest last week but that he had no knowledge of the extortion activity of the latter.

Pe said Cuyos should be held liable because it was his vehicle that was supposedly used by the latter as a getaway vehicle and their being together on the same place was more than just a coincidence.

Batigalao and Cuyos were arrested in an entrapment operation conducted by NBI for an alleged extortion attempt from fish vendors Francisco and Dahlia Nabua last Wednesday night.

But while Cuyos was one of the two policemen arrested, the Nabua couple only complained of Batigalao and a certain Cyril Valencia to the NBI.

As a result, the city prosecutor's office dismissed the case against Cuyos because there was no sufficient evident to prove that the latter was part in such irregularity.

The Nabua couple, who were believed to be drug pushers, filed a complaint against the two who allegedly demanded P200,000 from them in an earlier drug bust operation but eventually settled for P95,000, which was slated to be collected during the NBI's entrapment operation Wednesday night of last week.