NE town cop chief sacked over jueteng

CABANATUAN CITY — The police chief of Talavera town in Nueva Ecija has been relieved from his post following a raid on a suspected jueteng den in his turf last Saturday.

Chief Superintendent Alejandro Lapinid, Central Luzon police director, sacked Chief Inspector Fernando Galang and designated Chief Inspector Arnel Libed as officer-in-charge of the Talavera police.

Senior Superintendent Alex Paul Monteagudo, Nueva Ecija police director, said Galang’s relief was in line with the "one-strike policy" of Philippine National Police chief Director General Arturo Lomibao against jueteng.

Under the policy, a police station commander is sacked after just one successful raid on a jueteng den in his area of jurisdiction.

Monteagudo said Galang’s relief came after a police team, led by Superintendent Roel Obusan, chief of the provincial investigation and intelligence branch, swooped down on a jueteng den in Barangay Poblacion Sur, Talavera town and arrested 13 jueteng personnel last Saturday.

The jueteng den was located just a few blocks away from the municipal hall and police station.

Obusan’s team seized P1,234 in jueteng bets and impounded a green L-300 Versa van with license plate DWW 609.

Police identified a certain Castelo and Oreng, both based in Metro Manila, as the jueteng financier and maintainer, respectively.

Jueteng grounded to a halt in Nueva Ecija after Lomibao ordered a nationwide crackdown on the illegal numbers game, although there are visible attempts to revive it in some parts of the province. — Manny Galvez