Court acquits 2 drug pushing suspects

The court yesterday acquitted two suspected drug pushers after the arresting city policemen failed to prove their guilt beyond reasonable doubt.

Regional Trial Court judge Gabriel Ingles then ordered the immediate release of the acquitted suspects, Julius Gaviola and Richard Calipayan, from the Cebu City jail.

Gaviola was arrested on November 28, 2005 when he allegedly handed over to a poseur buyer two packs of shabu, weighing a total of 49.9 grams, during a police buy-bust.

The 30-year-old Gaviola, who used to work as a lathe machine operator of a shop in M.J. Cuenco Avenue, denied that the policemen got packs of shabu from him. He said he was walking along the highway when two policemen, in civilian clothes, brought him to a fast food outlet at Gorordo corner General Maxilom Avenue supposedly to look for his elder sister, Grace.

SPO1 Cecilio Gomez testified that Grace has been under surveillance allegedly for illegal drugs activities. He said that when the policemen got into the agreed meeting place of the poseur buyer and Grace, it was Gaviola who allegedly came and handed the shabu to the “buyer.”

The police insisted that the poseur buyer gave the money to Gaviola supposedly as payment for the shabu but the poseur buyer himself testified that he did not.

The court then said that it could no longer determine who was telling the truth or what was really the truth. “In sum, the testimonies of the policemen render them unreliable,” said Ingles.

The other case, 37-year-old Richard Calipayan of Cabantan Street in barangay Luz was arrested by the police on June 3, 2006 when he allegedly gave shabu to a poseur buyer.

Calipayan was reportedly with Anecito Durano, who allegedly received the buy-bust money and who was the actual target of the policemen. Durano however managed to escape by duping the “buyer” to wait for the “bought” item that he was going to get then.

Durano did not come back and since it was Calipayan who allegedly showed up to give the shabu to the poseur buyer, he was the one arrested by the police.

“It is difficult to believe that the police who intended to arrest Anecito Duran in an entrapment operation, would agree to give the money to him and allow him to leave with that money. The way the arresting officers described the conduct of their operation is contrary to what a buy-bust operation should be, thus, it is not credible,” the court ruled in acquitting Calipayan from the charges. — Rene U. Borromeo/RAE