QCPD offers anew to patrol UP campus after latest heist

MANILA, Philippines - The Quezon City Police District (QCPD) again made an offer to patrol the Diliman campus of the University of the Philippines (UP) after robbers victimized a political science professor on Wednesday.

However, the UP Diliman police turned down the offer, citing its decades-old policy of banning uniformed law enforcers from patrolling the campus, QCPD director Chief Superintendent Richard Albano said yesterday.

According to Albano, the offer was extended by QCPD Station 9 commander Superintendent Richard Fiesta, whose area of jurisdiction covers the campus, during a meeting with the officer-in-charge of the UP Diliman police.

“They strictly will not allow uniformed policemen and marked (police) vehicles inside the campus,” Albano said in an interview.

Professor Perlita Frago was targeted by three men as she was about to board her car before 5 p.m. on Wednesday at the parking lot in front of Palma Hall, Fiesta said.

Frago was pushed into her car, handcuffed and had her head covered by the robbers, who threatened to harm her unless she told them her ATM account’s personal identification number.

After the robbers withdrew money and took her iPhone, Frago was driven back to the campus where they left her behind.

Albano said they are interviewing parking attendants to get an idea of the robbers’ identities.

The police have long been banned from patrolling the campus despite a number of high-profile crimes there.

There was the robbery in the building housing the university student council, during which a female student was critically wounded.

A few years ago, there was also a robbery outside a bank at the UP Bahay ng Alumni, resulting in the death of a security guard and a roving teller.

Albano had repeatedly brought up past proposals to allow the police to patrol the campus. After he was turned down, the QCPD donated bicycles and loaned a patrol car for the use of the UP Diliman police.