Euro cop's pals chip in P4.4 million

MANILA, Philippines - That’s what friends are for.

Friends of retired police comptroller Director Eliseo de la Paz have donated money to enable the controversial former police officer to pay the Philippine National Police back the 105,000 euros or P6.9 million seized from him by Russian authorities at a Moscow airport last October.

“The money was contributed by his (De la Paz) friends. The checks were paid to the PNP account,” Chief Superintendent Rey Lanada, chief of the PNP Finance Service, told The STAR.

Lanada said De la Paz paid the amount in checks yesterday afternoon.

He said the retired comptroller paid the peso equivalent of 65,000 euros. Alex Binestkiy, De la Paz’s lawyer in Russia, had earlier transmitted to the PNP account from Moscow 40,000 euros.

De la Paz’s Filipino counsel Noel Malaya said his client paid P4,448,000 to the PNP Finance Service yesterday before 3 p.m. or the close of the banking day.

With the payment of money to the PNP, De la Paz has been cleared of any civil liability.

De la Paz and his wife were held at a Moscow airport on Oct. 11, 2008 for carrying the undeclared euros, after they attended the 77th International Police (Interpol) General Assembly in St. Petersburg, Russia.

The other police officials in the PNP delegation to the Interpol meeting were Deputy Directors General Emmanuel Carta, Ismael Rafanan, Directors Romeo Ricardo, Silverio Alarcio, German Doria and Jaime Caringal, Superintendent Elmer Pelobello, who is the aide of the delegation.

PNP spokesman Chief Superintendent Nicanor Bartolome said De la Paz cannot claim his retirement benefits pending the investigation of the Office of the Ombudsman on his criminal liability for allegedly taking funds from the PNP Directorate for Intelligence without proper authorization.