Sheriff arrested in extortion case

Agents of the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Task Force (PAOCTF) arrested over the weekend a Manila court sheriff for alleged extortion.

PAOCTF director for Luzon Senior Superintendent Cesar Mancao identified the suspect as Sheriff Raymundo Rojas of the Manila Metropolitan Trial Court Branch 24.

Mancao said Rojas was arrested shortly after he received P5,000 in marked money he had earlier demanded from complainant Fulgencio Sideco.

Sideco had earlier complained that Rojas demanded P5,000 from him in exchange for the immediate release of gym equipment in the custody of his business partner.

Rojas told him that he could have the court order for the equipment's release signed by Manila Judge Aida Roque.

Chief Inspector Vicente Arnado arrested the suspect shortly after he received the marked money from Sideco near the Manila Metropolitan Trial Court building at the Old Fire Station in Sta. Cruz, Manila.

Last Friday, the task force announced the arrest of Parañaque Police Inspector Angel Habacon and Emmanuel Paralisan, a ranking official of the Land Registration Authority, also for alleged extortion.

Meanwhile, four precinct commanders were ordered relieved yesterday by Metro Manila police director Chief Superintendent Edgar Aglipay after their men were found "sleeping on the job."

The desk officers on duty in the four police precincts were found asleep and failed to notice an inspection team sent by Aglipay, who also took a pair of shoes of one of policemen and office equipment like typewriters, desk fan and a situation map.

Ordered relieved by Aglipay were Chief Inspector Roberto Alanas, Inspector Alberto Malaza, Superintendent Virgilio Rivera and SPO1 Juan Ranjo. Alanas is the commander of Precinct 3 and Malaza of Precinct 2, both of Station 6 of the Central Police District (CPD) while Rivera and Ranjo are of Precincts 10 and 12, respectively, of the Caloocan City police.

"We should not hesitate to throw the book at them if they were found guilty of any wrongdoing. We must fully support them if they are doing their job," Aglipay told a gathering of district directors and station commanders in Camp Bagong Diwa, Bicutan, Taguig.

The relief of the four precinct commanders came after Aglipay's deputy for administration and concurrent head of the Regional Investigation and Intelligence Committee (RIIC) Chief Superintendent Efren Fernandez reported that his inspection team found the desk officers of the said police precincts sleeping while on duty.

Fernandez said PO1 Manuel Gabanes, of Precinct 3 in Quezon City failed to notice his men who arrived at 4:15 a.m. Friday. His men took Gabanes' shoes, a wall clock and a situation map displayed on the wall at the back of the front desk. At Precinct 2, Fernandez's men took a typewriter and an electric fan.

In Caloocan City, the RIIC operatives took a typewriter from Precinct 10 and a hand-held radio from Precinct 12.

According to Aglipay, the four precinct commanders will be temporarily assigned at their respective districts pending investigation of their administrative culpability. The four desk officers who were found asleep will be reassigned to their station's anti-riot unit.

Their immediate superiors were reprimanded and warned that repeated violation would be "dealt with accordingly."--