PNP relieves Eastern Police Director, Pasay police chief

March 6, 2019

Police Genera Oscar Albayalde, head of the Philippine National Police (PNO) Wednesday relieved two ranking police officials after their men were arrested for allegedly using the government's war on illegal drugs to extort money.

Relieved were Eastern Police District (EPD) director Brig. Gen. Bernabe Balba and Pasay City police chief Col. Noel Flores.

They were replaced by Brig. Gen. Christopher Tambungan, executive officer of the Directorate for Police Community Relations (DPCR) and Col. Bernard Yang, regional operations chief  of the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO).

Maj. Gen. Guillermo Lorenzo Eleazar, chief of the National Capitol Region Police,  said the two were replaced based on command responsibility after members of their respective drug enforcement units (DEUs) were caught in separate entrapment operations.

“The chief PNP has given instruction to relieve the commanders who are directly accountable and responsible for the drug enforcement units,” Eleazar said in a news briefing in Camp Crame.

Eleazar also announced the relief of 15 anti-narcotics officers of the EPD led by Maj. Allan Miparanum and 27 cops from the Pasay police DEU's headed by Lt. Ronaldo Frades.

They were reassigned to the Personnel Holding and Accounting Unit (PHAU) in Camp Crame.

On Tuesday, Corporal Mario Quibete of the EPD DEU was arrested in a sting in Barangay Santolan, Pasig City around 10:30 p.m. after he extorted money from the live-in partner of a drug suspect who was arrested in a previous operation.

The police officer has allegedly collected P40,000, a necklace and motorcycle.

Even if the suspect collected an estimated P80,000 in cash and other items, he demanded P20,000 which prompted the victim's live-in partner to seek assistance from Eleazar.

Based on the text messages from Quibete's cellphone, he communicated his  transactions with three police officers, including Miparanum, his immediate superior.

Eleazar scolded Quibete during a confrontation at the Marikina City police station where the scalawag was brought by personnel of the regional special operations unit.

A separate operation by members of the PNP Counter-Intelligence Task Force (CITF) led to the arrest of Corporal Anwar Nasser at the Pasay police station's DEU office around 4:10 a.m.

CITF commander Col. Romeo Caramat Jr. said Nasser was caught in a sting operation while his cohorts, including Lt. Frades, Patrolman Anthony Fernandez and Staff Sergeant Rigor Octaviano escaped through the backdoor of their office, taking P100 in marked money.

The operation stemmed a woman's complaint that police officers demanded money in exchange for the freedom of her live-in partner who was arrested on drug charges. DMS