DILG chief: Reward system may have driven criminal enterprise in PNP
MANILA, Philippines — The reward system implemented in the Philippine National Police (PNP) may have kickstarted a criminal enterprise within the agency, according to Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Jonvic Remulla on Monday, January 13.
In a press briefing in Malacañan Palace, authorities bared plans to reevaluate and possibly withdraw the case of Sgt. Rodolfo Mayo and a certain Ney Atadero, as these cases may be filed based on false allegations.
“There appears to be a grand conspiracy to conceal a criminal enterprise within the PNP. It must be inherent in the institution that with the responsibility of being an officer of the law comes with the power alone does not make you impervious the prosecution,” Remulla said.
The DILG chief said that in the case of Mayo, cops on all levels were involved.
He said the anomalies from the case suggest the existence of a “grand conspiracy."
The running theory of authorities is that it became standard practice for several PNP officers to have a drug haul, where only a small portion is turned in, while the rest is hidden in a warehouse.
The practice stems from the year that former president Rodrigo Duterte assumed power in office and began his bloody war on drugs.
“It is our theory, but not proven na dahil sa reward system na ginawa ng instituted by the PNP in 2016 started, ang drug haul ay hindi nire-report at tuwing may—dahil may reward, kukuha sila ng tingi, ilalagay doon, may reward, may accomplishment. So, doon nagkaroon ng bodega, kuha, arrest, reward, promotion. Parang ganoon ang naging sistema nila,” Remulla said.
(It is our theory, but not proven na because of the reward system that was instituted by the PNP started in 2016, the drug haul was not reported during—because there is a reward, they will get a portion, they will put it in, there is a reward, there is an accomplishment. So there is a bodega. They get, and then arrest, and then there is a promotion. Their system became like that.)
The reward system was initially exposed by former police colonel Royina Garma in the House of Representatives’ Quad Committee probe into the war on drugs.
What happened before
Mayo was the central cop tagged in the 2022 seizure of 1.5 tons of shabu worth P10.15 billion. The case unraveled to suggest a coverup within the PNP involving high-ranking police officials.
Napolcom Vice Chairperson and Executive Officer Ricardo Bernabe III recounted the previous findings.
In Tondo, Mayo was caught on CCTV carrying what appeared to be shabu on Oct. 8, 2022. On the same day, several members of the Special Operating Unit Region IV-A (SOU4A) of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Group led by team leader Capt. Jonathan Sosongco conducted an illegal drug raid in Bambang St., Tondo, Manila, leading to Mayo’s arrest.
However, the raid and arrest were neither reported, nor documented.
The SOU4A, with Mayo in custody, then proceeded to the Wealth and Personal Development (WPD) Lending office, which Mayo owned, for what appeared to be a follow-up operation. There, they uncovered a massive stash of shabu.
Several officers were seen misappropriating large quantities of shabu from the WPD Lending Office.
From the incident, there were reports of “a large and unprecedented drug haul”, prompting high-ranking officials of the PNP to go to where the drugs were found. At this point, no official declarations of arrest or anti-illegal drug operations were made.
“The first part of the coverup, therefore, pertains to the decision to exclude Sgt. Mayo from the report and inventory of the anti-illegal drugs operation at the WPD Lending office, and instead, implicate his employee, Ney Atadero. This false narrative was used by the operatives in official documents,” Bernabe said.
Pinning the drug bust on Atadero was supposedly done to absolve Mayo and cover the irregularities from his arrest. Mayo was also released from police custody.
“On December 13 and 19, 2024 and January 6 and 9, 2025, the Napolcom En Banc resolved all the remaining cases covering 99 summary dismissal cases involving 56 respondents. As resolved by the Napolcom En Banc, 21 respondents were dismissed from the service; 16 respondents were demoted in rank; four respondents were suspended for six months and 12 respondents’ cases were dismissed. With respect to the three respondents who are presidential appointees, our recommendation for dismissal from the service shall be subject to the confirmation by the Office of the President,” Bernabe said.
Prosecutor General Richard Fadullon said this prompted the Department of Justice to reassess the case against Mayo and Atendero.
However, Fadullon added that 30 police officers, including those with the rank of Police Lieutenant Colonel and Police Brigadier General, are facing possible charges over the alleged cover-up.
Retired police chief Rodolfo Santos Azurin Jr., who was the head of the PNP at the time, is not included in the case. Azurin had been one of the last high-ranking officials to clear Mayo’s release.
However, Remulla has not closed the possibility of other officials being included in the case buildup.
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