Masiao ‘coordinator’ arrested

CEBU, Philippines - Police arrested an alleged masiao coordinator in an operation in Sitio Kawayan, Barangay Guadalupe, last Monday night.

Chief Insp. Romeo Santander, who heads the City Intelligence Branch of the Cebu City Police Office, identified the suspect as Lodgerio Labra, 57.

A team of CIB operatives led by Insp. William Alicaba went to the place around 8 p.m. and arrested Labra, who was reportedly caught in the act of handing over stubs to a police decoy, Santander said.

“Naa’y pulis ming-act as decoy, nagpasumangil og pusta ngadto niya kay ilado man na siya diha na coordinator sa Masiao. Paghatag niya sa stub, gidakop namo siya,” said Santander. He said the suspect was arrested by the Guadalupe Police for the same offense last October.

Santander said when they tried to arrest him the suspect ran inside his house so the police followed him and arrested him there.

Inside, the police recovered tally sheets, eight stubs, 11 ballpens, three calculators, and a .22 cal. rifle allegedly owned by the suspect.

The suspect’s family will be filing counter-charges against the police.

Santander said the operation was legitimate.

“Bet-bust operation man ‘to, so mosud g’yud mi sa balay para mangita og ebidensiya, dili ransack,” Santander further asserted.

However, Jay “Badidi” Labra, 27, denied the accusations against his father.

Jay claimed that he was having dinner while his father was reading the newspaper when they heard a loud banging at their door.

“We thought ako ra ‘tong manghod nakagawas unya naa na ma’y nisinggit na ‘ablihi mi! ablihi mi! Gipangutana sa akong Papa kung kinsa, wa g’yud sila magpaila hangtod naguba g’yud nila ang lock sa pultahan ug nisod sila ug gi-ransack among balay,” Jay told The FREEMAN.

He further said that he and his siblings can attest that the police only recovered the rifle which they said was already two decades old and no longer functional.

Jay admitted that his father was once involved in the illegal gambling but stopped after his arrest last October and he was discharged as a barangay tanod.

Since then, Jay said his father has been selling fish as a living.

Jay sought the help of his friends and requested television reporters to take footage of the incident.  His mother also took a video of the arrest. Jay’s friend also created a blog about the incident which was titled “Cebu Police Can’t Protect Us.”

“I have to put this on social media para mahibaw-an ang gibuhat sa pulis, which is pwede sad nila mabuhat sa uban,” said Jay, a Fine Arts major of the University of the Philippines–Cebu.  He has also talked with his lawyer regarding the filing of charges against the police.

Santander said Jay’s move in using social media is unfair and urged the family to file a case against the police instead.

The CIB chief further said they did not plant the evidence, because even the handwritten dates in the tally sheets and stubs were on the day they conducted the raid.

The suspect will face charges for illegal gambling, illegal possession of firearms, and violation of the Comelec gun ban, said Santander.  The suspect can get his temporary liberty if he can post bail for each case, the police said.

Senior Supt. Mariano Natuel Jr., officer-in-charge of CCPO, tasked the Investigation and Detective Management Branch to investigate what happened.

“The focus of the investigation is the manner how the search was conducted,” Natuel said.

If a legitimate operation is proven, Natuel said there would be no need for a search warrant, which the suspect’s family contended that CIB operatives were not able to provide during the raid.  –(FREEMAN)