Loot to settle feud between 2 police officers of Camotes

Cebu Provincial Police director Vicente Loot yesterday said he will meet this Friday the chief of police and the chief investigator of the San Francisco Police in Camotes Island to settle first any dispute, and its cause, between the two policemen.

Whatever differences should be ironed out and the cause ascertained first before deciding on who between chief of police, Insp. Januario Sario, and chief investigator SPO1 Valentino Guevarra would be reassigned to mainland Cebu, said Loot.

The matter started last December 15 when Loot received a letter-complaint from Guevarra alleging that Sario had been spending more time in mainland Cebu than in the San Francisco Police station.

Guevarra also complained that his accomplishments were left unacknowledged because Sario was not always there to notice them. This prompted Guevarra to ask for transfer of assignment to mainland Cebu, especially with the rift between him and Sario.

But Sario, in a separate interview yesterday had a different story. He said the matter between him and Guevarra was only internal in nature, claiming that he transferred the latter from investigator to member of the alert team and this could have caused Guevarra to get mad at him.

"Di lang dyud na siya magpabadlong busa siya na mismo maoy mi-request ug transfer," Sario said.

Last December, Sario got angry at Guevarra for informing him at the last minute that he will attend a 10-day seminar in Cebu City, leaving unfinished an investigation over a shooting incident, for which the suspect must be released by Sario after the reglementary period lapsed.

Sario also submitted his explanation letter to Loot on why most of the time he was not in his office at Camotes last year. He told Loot that he was busy then working for his promotion to police inspector, a rank that he eventually obtained.

Sario also said he had been assisting his men in the filing of cases at the provincial prosecutor's office against suspected offenders in San Fernando. He even used his vehicle in transporting inmates of his place, from the Danao City wharf to the Capitol, and finally to the provincial jail in Kalunasan.

However, Loot wanted to listen personally to each of the two feuding policemen, and determine how the matter could be resolved before taking one of them out of Camotes.

This early, Loot commented that Sario's going to Cebu City may not mean he had abandoned the police station in Camotes and left it under the care of his personnel. - Flor Z. Perolina