Atienza said he wants a detailed report on reports that eight policemen assigned to the WPD Detective Beat Patrol Group detained and extorted P900,000 from Binondo-based businessmen Jimmy Ong and Kelvin Kho on Nov. 2.
"If the evidence warrants, appropriate charges should be filed in court and (PLEB) People’s Law Enforcement Board," the mayor said. "If found guilty, these police officers should be dismissed from the service."
Pending the result of the probe, Atienza directed WPD director Senior Superintendent Pedro Bulaong to restrict the policemen to headquarters and not give them any assignments.
Placed under investigation were SPO4 Rodolfo Rival, SPO3 Eduardo Liwanag, SPO2 Angelo Cameron, SPO2 Elias Dematera, SPO2 Teodoro Retuta, SPO2 Leonardo Santos, PO3 Robert Sena and PO3 Rommel Baylon.
The mayor said PLEB, now under the leadership of anti-crime advocate Teresita Ang-See, and the city government would use traditional powers provided for under President Arroyo’s Memorandum No. 77 in dealing with the case. The memorandum gives local government units more disciplinary powers over policemen in their respective towns and cities.
Meanwhile, the WPD General Assignments Section is urging the two Filipino-Chinese traders to surface and shed light on the shakedown.
According to Chief Inspector Arturo Paglinawan, the case now lies with the statements of alleged kidnap victims, Benjamin Ong and Kelvin Kho.
"We definitely need their statements to finally resolve this case. They are the only ones who can really tell us what had happened, Chief Inspector Arturo Paglinawan said. "If they are not hiding anything, why should they be afraid to come forward?"
Tabloids earlier reported that Ong was snatched by the eight policemen while walking in Binondo, Manila.
Reports said Ong was blindfolded and handcuffed and was taken to WPD headquarters. There, the policemen allegedly forced him to admit being a drug trafficker.
The policemen, the reports said, later called Ong’s family and asked P3 million for his release. The amount was later reduced to P500,000.
Kho was also detained by the eight policemen at headquarters when he visited Ong. The two were released the following morning following an alleged payment at a fastfood restaurant in front of WPD headquarters.
But an initial investigation conducted by the WPD-GAS showed that Ong and Kho, also known as Xu Peizhu, were arrested by elements of the Detective Beat Patrol Group on the complaint of a certain Paquito Matias, 56, a businessman from Caloocan City.
In his complaint, Matias said Ong sold him 10 Seiko diver’s watches for P15,000. He later learned that the watches were fakes.
According to the Detective Beat Patrol Group, they chanced upon Ong in a follow-up operation in Quiapo, Manila at about 7:30 a.m. on Nov. 2.
Police officers spotted Ong and Kho along Carriedo Street in Quiapo, Manila. They immediately arrested the duo and seized fake Seiko and Citizen watches, a police report said.
Charges were then filed against the two at the WPD headquarters. Paglinawan said Ong and Xu were later allowed to go home at about 2:00 p.m. on Nov. 3.
According to Paglinawan, the estafa case was amicably settled between Ong and Matias.
Paglinawan said they are finding it hard to investigate the alleged kidnapping as Ong has still yet to file a formal complaint against his alleged kidnappers.