BFP officer faces graft, extort raps

MANILA, Philippines - The Office of the Ombudsman yesterday filed criminal charges against an officer of the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) for allegedly extorting money from a private firm.

Senior Fire Officer 2 Carlos Francisco is being indicted for graft and robbery for allegedly asking for money to do his job.

Francisco was ordered suspended for six months without pay pending administrative proceedings against him for grave misconduct.

He was nabbed in an entrapment conducted by the National Bureau of  Investigation (NBI) on Sept. 26 following a complaint from Carne Fresca Inc. (CFI).

Records of the inquest proceedings show that CFI applied for a business permit that required a Fire Safety Inspection Certification (FSIC) from the BFP San Lazaro station. 

Francisco conducted an inspection of CFI on June 5 and recommended that the company provide six fire extinguishers, three illuminated exit signs and payment of processing fees. 

He allegedly required CFI to buy the fire extinguishers from a preferred supplier, NEMRAC Trading, which sells fire extinguishers for P6,500, compared to those sold by Mark Vent Enterprises for only P4,500 per unit. 

The firm managed to haggle for a lower price of P4,000 fire extinguisher in exchange for the FSIC, but asked the NBI for help in entrapping the BFP officer.