Entire cop station risks getting relieved

CEBU, Philippines - The Cebu Provincial Police Office plans to relieve the entire workforce of a certain police station in southern Cebu — from the station commander down to the lowest rank — after receiving reports that some of them are still involved in illegal drugs.

CPPO Director Senior Superintendent Eric Noble, in a press conference yesterday, said the entire town police force might be ousted from their current posts possibly next week.

“Kung pwedeng i-relieve natin yung buong police station, gagawin natin just to send the message na ang internal cleansing is alive and being implemented in Cebu province,” Noble said.

As this developed, the Liloan police chief booted out their desk and jail officer after it was discovered that he supplied drugs to the station’s inmates, following an in-house greyhound operation.

The FREEMAN is withholding the police station’s name pending further investigation, as well as that of the relieved Liloan police officer pending his statement.

Drug supplier?

At least 12 sachets of suspected shabu were confiscated from three inmates of Liloan Police Station during the Oplan Galugad on Thursday evening, according to Chief Inspector Francis Oriol.

Five sachets were seized from inmate Arnel Noval Mata, 36, of Danao City; another five from Jeppe Suralta Rosal, 29, of San Francisco, Camotes; and two sachets from another prisoner identified as Procopio Segovia Gromia Jr., 33, of Barangay Catarman, Liloan.

Mata and Rosal are the supposed cohorts of suspected drug lord Alvaro “Barok” Alvaro and allegedly behind the killing of Senior Inspector Jonas Tajanlangit, chief of Poro, Camotes station chief, in April last year.

Aside from drugs, police also recovered assorted drug paraphernalia inside the detention cell.

Oriol said the operation was hatched after a reliable informant tipped the police that three inmates were allegedly using drugs inside the cell.

Oriol ordered the relief of the desk officer, concurrently the jail officer, when investigation pointed to him as the source of the inmates’ drugs. The officer had been allegedly supplying drugs to the inmates for two weeks and received a total of P11,000 for the activity.

Gromia, during interrogation, told the police that his sister was the desk officer’s girlfriend.

Oriol immediately disarmed the policeman and recommended him for camp restriction at the CPPO Police Holding and Accounting Unit.

“Na-surprise gyud ko kay sa akong nahibaw-an naay reklamo niya pero bahin lang sa batasan pero dili drugas. Pagkahibalo nako, mao tong amoa dayon nga gisulod,” he said.

Noble commended Liloan police for the operation and urged other stations to follow suit.

NEW DRUG GROUPS

Meanwhile, authorities are verifying reports that new groups are being formed to continue the illegal activities of neutralized drug personalities.

Chief Superintendent Noel Taliño, Police Regional Office-7 director, said drug suspects took advantage of the suspension of police-initiated anti-illegal drug operations based on intelligence reports.

Yogi Filemon Ruiz, Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency-7 director, said they will look into these reports, particularly setting their eyes on a group that will supposedly continue the business of suspected drug personality Franz Sabalones.

"If iyang mga tawo nangbalik, that's a problem. We have to identify them again," Ruiz said. — Christell Fatima M. Tudtud and Michael Vencynth H. Braga (FREEMAN)