MANILA -- Three Manila policemen who allegedly pretended to be agents of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) and extorted PHP300,000 from a victim were arrested Wednesday.
The National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) identified the suspects as PO1 Radam Reyes Manglicmot, PO1 Edmar Dalusong Cayanan, and PO1 Jeff-Pee Macapagal Calaguas.
The three were arrested in a joint operation conducted by PDEA-NCR and the Manila Police District that stemmed from the complaint of victim, Mohammad Shahjahan Maid Haider.
Haider, together with PDEA-NCR, lodged a complaint for the alleged robbery extortion amounting to PHP300,000 against the three policemen.
An entrapment operation was conducted inside the office of the Anti-Crime Unit of the Ermita Police that resulted in the arrest of the three suspects.
NCRPO Director Chief Supt. Guillermo Eleazar confronted the three suspects early Thursday.
He also ordered the relief of Supt. Emerey Abating from his post as Ermita Police chief.
Citing such complaint against policemen, Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Oscar Albayalde emphasized the need to revise the PNP's recruitment process.
"I think talagang sa recruitment meron na po talagang problema siguro sa aming background investigation, kailangan talagang paigtingin yan. Actually, yan po ang isang direktiba na kailangan paigtingin, paghusayin yung aming background investigation bago po makapasok yung isang tao para magpulis (The recruitment process is problematic. We need to improve the background investigation as a process before allowing the entry of new cops," Albayalde said in a radio interview. (PNA)
