MANILA, Philippines — Twelve former anti-narcotics officers of the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) were cleared by the Department of Justice (DOJ) of wrongdoing over the kidnapping of four drug suspects.
The Department of Justice (DOJ), in a 23-page resolution obtained by The STAR, dismissed the kidnapping and serious illegal detention cases against Lt. Col. Ryan Jay Orapa, Lt. Jesus Menez, Staff Sergeants Roy Pioquinto, Robert Allan Raz and Denar Roda and Corporals Alric Natividad, Troy Paragas, Ronald John Lanaria, Ronald Montibon, Reynaldo Seno, Ruscel Solomon and Christal Rhine Rosita.
The DOJ also dismissed the cases against the police officers for violation of Republic Act 1035, or the Anti-Enforced or Involuntary Disappearance Act, and perjury.
The cases were filed by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) following an investigation into the kidnapping and disappearance of siblings of Gio and Mico Mateos, Garry Magreo Jr. and Ronaldo Anonuevo on April 13, 2021 in Alfonso town and Dasmariñas City in Cavite.
The administrative cases against the police officers were also dismissed by the Philippine National Police (PNP).
The police officers were accused of kidnapping the victims and making it appear as a drug sting operation.
In its resolution, the DOJ said there were no eyewitnesses to the kidnappings and that the NBI’s Task Force Against Illegal Drugs (TFAID) relied on closed-circuit television (CCTV) footages and other documents such as coordination form, pre-operation report, a pre-operation clearance and photographs.
The NBI obtained CCTV footage of the police officers and their informants entering a restaurant café in Tagaytay City to have breakfast before boarding their vehicles which were supposedly used in the kidnappings.
“Premises considered, it becomes clear that the NBI-TFAID failed to establish an unbroken chain of events. Due to this failure, in addition to the facts that the persons in the CCTV footage were not properly identified, the complaint must necessarily fail,” the DOJ said.
The documents which the NBI obtained, according to the DOJ, “could not flip the findings” in their favor for the reason that the documents would not necessarily place the police officers on the scene of the supposed kidnapping incidents.
“In conclusion, despite the circumstantial evidence presented, we believe that there is no probable cause to indict the respondents in conspiracy with each other, for the crime of kidnapping and serious illegal detention for lack of proper identification,” the DOJ said.
The pieces of evidence obtained by the NBI are also insufficient to prove the disappearance of the victims was sanctioned by the State.
“This insufficiency can only be filled if and when the actual identities of the perpetrators are revealed in an exacting manner. It bears emphasizing the actual identities of the perpetrators are unknown,” the DOJ said.
Some of the police officers are now assigned with the PNP Drug Enforcement Group.