KORONADAL CITY -- A police official in South Cotabato province is facing possible administrative and criminal charges for allegedly mauling a civilian late last week.
Maj. Joseph Forro III, chief of the Banga municipal police station, personally confirmed on Wednesday that he is being investigated by the Internal Affairs Service (IAS) of the South Cotabato Police Provincial Office over the incident.
A certain Jestoni Saligumba, a resident of Barangay Liwanay in Banga, earlier filed a complaint against Forro for alleged physical maltreatment.
Forro denied the accusation, claiming it was fabricated by the complainant.
Saligumba, who was accused of being involved in a stone-throwing incident, said Forro, who was allegedly drunk that time, punched him on the head and stomach.
Following the complaint, Forro said he was ordered by the provincial IAS to appear in a conference here on Thursday to get his side of the story.
“(IAS) will determine if there is a probable cause to file administrative charges against me,” he said in an interview over radio station Radyo Bida.
Forro said he went to Barangay Liwanay around 8:30 p.m. last Friday along with their patrol team to respond to a reported stone-throwing incident in the area.
The police station has been repeatedly receiving reports about commotion involving passing vehicles along the national highway in Barangay Liwanay, he said.
Upon arriving at the site, Forro said they approached Saligumba for questioning as part of their standard operating procedure.
He said the alleged mauling and maltreatment never happened and he was not drunk at the time.
“We only gathered information from residents near the area about the incident. Some of the members of the community sometimes feel offended by our questions but that is part of the process. There is definitely no human rights violation on this," he said.
Forro said he is planning to hire a private lawyer for the possible filing of counter-charges against Saligumba. (PNA)
