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[av_heading heading=’ COPS LINKED TO ‘PUSHER’ Did they receive drug payola? ‘ tag=’h3′ style=’blockquote modern-quote’ size=’30’ subheading_active=’subheading_below’ subheading_size=’15’ padding=’10’ color=” custom_font=”]
BY RUBY P. SILUBRICO
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ILOILO City – An arrested drug pushing suspect claimed four police officers of the Iloilo City Police Office (ICPO) were frequently visiting the house of his brother, a drug suspect, too, but shot dead last year.
If 33-year-old Gilbert Sumudivilla of Rizal Street, Barangay Rizal Estanzuela, City Proper were to be believed, Police Officer 1 Henson Digon and Police Officer 1 Domar Deocampo were frequently in touch with his younger brother Kenneth.
Kenneth was shot dead in a police antidrug operation in Barangay Compania Central, Molo district on Aug. 5, 2016.
Sumudivilla named two more policemen his brother had contact with but failed to give their first names. He only identified them as Police Officer 2 Moso and Police Officer 3 Caro.
Sumudivilla was arrested at his house in a buy-bust operation on Tuesday around 7:30 p.m. Police recovered four sachets of shabu.
“I often saw the policemen talking to my brother (Kenneth). I don’t eavesdrop but one time I heard them talking about persons they were planning to arrest,” he said in a press conference that the city police arranged yesterday.
According to a police source, Sumudivilla claimed Kenneth shelled out P5,000 protection money weekly to the policemen. When queried by Panay News about this, however, the suspect clammed up.
Four months after Kenneth was killed, Police Officer 1 Digon was arrested in Barangay North Baluarte, Molo on Dec. 8, 2016, in a police antidrug operation.
Digon is currently detained at the Iloilo District Jail in Barangay Nanga, Pototan, Iloilo and faces a charge for violation of the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.
Police Officer 1 Deocampo, on the other hand, was caught in a police antidrug operation just this Aug. 12, 2017 in Barangay Tanza-Baybay, City Proper.
Deocampo used to be an intelligence officer and member of the Station Drug Enforcement Team of the Molo police station. He was relieved last year after his name was linked to a wanted drug personality and eventually reassigned to the Antique Police Provincial Office. He was posted at the Pandan municipal police station.
ICPO spokesperson Senior Inspector Shella Mae Sangrines said Gilbert’s allegations needed validation.
“Perhaps these police officers would be summoned, too,” said Sangrines.
Deocampo is currently detained at Police Station 1 and faces a charge for violation of the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002. After his arrest, however, he accused the arresting officers of “planting” shabu on him.
This serious accusation prompted the Iloilo City Police Office (ICPO) to order an investigation on Police Station 1.
If Deocampo were to be believed, no buy-bust took place. He said he was already sleeping but was awakened around 2:30 a.m. by Police Station 1 commander, Chief Inspector Aldrin Lamera knocking on the door of his house.
With Lamera were Police Officer 3 Wilfredo Tagle and six other cops, said Deocampo.
According to Deocampo, Lamera asked him to come out of the house and right there he was handcuffed, forced to board the police patrol car then taken to Police Station 1.
At the police station, Deocampo said, he stripped himself of most of his clothes to supposedly avert any attempt to “plant” evidence on him.
Deocampo said he was familiar with this modus because when he was still with the ICPO this was what he did to drug suspects.
At the police station, according to Deocampo, Police Officer 3 Tagle got from his own pocket P1,200 cash and two sachets of shabu then declared that these were the buy-bust money and shabu recovered from their operation against him./PN
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