THE National Police Commission (Napolcom) has suspended for 90 days a police general who was slapped with an administrative complaint over the alleged questionable arrest of the two brothers of the whistleblower in the case of the missing “sabungeros” (cockfighting enthusiast).
Napolcom vice chairman and concurrent executive director Rafael Vicente Calinisan said the suspension of Brig. Gen. Macapaz is a “preventive measure to preserve the integrity of the (administrative) investigation.”
The resolution ordering the 90-day suspension of Macapaz, who is the director of the Soccsksargen police regional office, was signed on Wednesday.
Whistleblower Julie “Totoy” Patidongan and his brother Ellakim filed charges of grave misconduct and conduct unbecoming of a police officer against Macapaz and two others before the Napolcom last August 14. The two other police officers have been cleared due to lack of probable cause.
The Patidongan brothers’ complaint stemmed from last month’s arrest of Ellakim and another Patidongan brother, Jose, who were “fetched” by operatives of the PNP Criminal Investigation and Detection Group, then headed by Macapaz, at a Southeast Asian country to become as government witnesses in the sabungeros case.
However, Ellakim and Jose alleged they ended up getting arrested, with the CIDG operatives confiscating their mobile phones. They said that when their phones were later returned to them, the memory cards, which purportedly contained vital evidence in the sabungeros case, were already missing.
Ellakim asked the Napolcom to place Macapaz under preventive suspension “to avoid possible miscarriage of justice.”
In its resolution, the Napolcom said that after a “careful and judicious evaluation” of the records and the motion, it found
the motion of Ellakim “meritorious,” saying there is “substantial legal and factual basis” to suspend Macapaz.
It noted Ellakim’s allegation that Macapaz “knowingly and willfully” obstructed the investigation on the case of the missing sabungeros by “unlawfully taking his cellphone and of his brother Jose Patidongan and refusing to return the same without any valid reasons.”
It likewise highlighted Ellakim’s claim that “respondent altered the messages contained in the cell phones by deleting some of the messages. He even allegedly concealed the SD cards of the cell phones despite knowing that these are material evidence in the missing Sabungeros case.”
The Napolcom said a police officer can be suspended, pending resolution of his administrative case, when the charge is serious or grave and the evidence of guilt is strong.
“The allegations against respondent concern grave misconduct and conduct unbecoming of a police officer, including alleged collusion with police officers involved in the alleged killings of the missing sabungeros,” the resolution read.
“The gravity of the charges, the preliminary showing of strong evidence of guilt, and the necessity to safeguard the integrity and impartiality of the proceedings collectively justify the imposition of preventive suspension against the respondent,” it added.
It said the gravity of the accusations, if substantiated, “would constitute severe violations of the norms” that are expected of police officers.
“Additionally, the preliminary evidence and factual allegations supporting the request for preventive suspension point to a level of involvement that satisfies the threshold of serious or grave serious or grave charges and strong evidence of guilt as contemplated in the above rule,” it added.
The Napolcom directed the PNP to “implement this order immediately and to submit proof of compliance” to the body within five days from receipt of the resolution.
“The imposition of preventive suspension is not a penalty but a protective and procedural measure intended to preserve the integrity of the investigation, prevent any undue influence or interference in the proceedings and assure the availability of evidence and witnesses,” it said.
“It serves to protect both public interest in the administrative process while allowing the case to be resolved on its merits in a fair, impartial and expeditious manner,” it added.
Calinisan stressed the suspension is not a form of penalty against Macapaz, who he said will probably be asked by his superiors to report to Camp Crame.
“If you are preventively suspended, you are still a policeman. It’s not a penalty. He will be most likely brought to Camp Crame and he will be placed in a holding unit and he will report there,” he said, adding the penalty will come once there is already a decision on the administrative cases.
“We are still deliberating and we are thoroughly looking into the evidence,” he said.
HOUSE QUAD PROBE
Meanwhile, the House quad committee is set look into the possibility that the case of the 34 missing sabungeros is linked to the Duterte administration’s bloody war on drugs.
Manila Rep. Bienvenido Abante Jr., chair the House Committee on Human Rights which is part of the joint committee, said the mega panel, which investigated the extrajudicial killings (EJKs) under the Duterte administration in the previous 19th Congress, will begin its probe next month.
Abante said some of the 18 police officers under investigation by the Napolcom for the disappearance of the e-sabong players were also notably involved in Duterte’s drug war and the reward system in place at the time.
“So, we want to know really how many of the officers in the custody of our PNP were involved un the reward system of the war on drugs back then,” he said in Filipino.
Abante said the joint committee will invite the 18 police officers, including the six who have been dismissed from the service, lamenting that the ongoing investigation into the missing sabungeros’ case seems to be “going nowhere.” – With Wendell Vigilia
