MANILA – Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Gen. Guillermo Eleazar on Tuesday has directed the Santa Rosa City police to get in touch with the family of former Kabataan Party-list Laguna chapter coordinator Kemuel Ian Cometa to validate claims that he has been missing for over a week.
“We need to talk to the parents of Kemuel and establish if he is really missing and, if verified, find leads to his possible whereabouts. We are ready to help in the search if he really has been missing for more than a week," Eleazar told reporters.
This came after rights group Karapatan's Southern Tagalog chapter alleged that Cometa, an alumnus of the University of the Philippines-Los Baños, was being detained by the police following a raid in a house in Barangay Macabiling, Santa Rosa City on May 21.
The Santa Rosa City police has denied the allegation.
Eleazar called on all friends and acquaintances of Cometa to cooperate with authorities to locate him soon.
He also urged those claiming that Cometa is in police custody to present evidence supporting their allegation. (PNA)