Chaos dims media gab for suspected ‘hulidap’ cops

Commotion marred the media presentation yesterday of two policemen assigned with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) and the National Capital Regional Police Office and another individual who were arrested by the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group for demanding P1-million from two individuals in what appeared to be another "hulidap" case in Makati City last week.

Senior Inspector Loreiman Manrique assigned at the Special Enforcement Unit of the PDEA and PO1 Froilan Trestiza, of the NCRPO-Special Action Line, resisted fellow policemen when they were about to be presented to the media by CIDG officials yesterday afternoon. But CIDG officials continued with the presentation.

CIDG officials said the suspects are facing kidnapping and illegal possession of firearms charges before the Makati City Prosecutor’s Office. A third individual, Ronnie Pineda, was also charged by the police.

Senior Superintendent Francisco Don Montenegro, head of the CIDG-NCR, said Makati Prosecutor Andres Marcos recommended no bail against the three suspects.

The victims identified as Lawrence Yu and his girlfriend, Maria Irma Navarro, said the policemen pounced on them at around 1 a.m. on Nov. 7 shortly after they went out of the Where Else Disco pub in Makati City in the guise of anti-drug operations. Navarro is a daughter of veteran radio broadcaster and Marcos loyalist Rod Navarro.

In their affidavits, Navarro said she was dragged into a Honda Civic car while Yu was shoved into a waiting Mitsubishi Adventure van on Nov. 7.

In convoy, the two vehicles with the victims on board, proceeded to a gasoline station along Ortigas Avenue in San Juan. Their abductors transferred them again to two other separate vehicles where the suspects demanded P1-million from Yu in exchange of their freedom.

Yu claimed he was beaten black and blue by the suspects, including a certain Buboy, who was later identified as Pineda. They covered Yu’s face with a gas mask before putting a plastic bag on his head.

Navarro recalled that she was boarded in another vehicle where the perpetrators armed with M-16 rifles threatened to kill her before demanding the ransom. The suspects also hit her on the head several times.

Yu and Navarro were released hours after they produced an initial P180,000. The erring policemen and their cohorts even took away the victims’ jewelry and a P270,000 worth of Rolex watch from Yu.

Police officials said Yu and Navarro were hesitant at first to file a complaint against the police suspects until they (suspects) started calling them up again last weekend, this time demanding P500,000.

In yesterday’s media presentation, Manrique and Trestiza, while in handcuffs, claimed they were framed up by CIDG agents who arrested them. "Meron nasagasaan lang ako na malaking tao," said Manrique as he objected to his police escorts from bringing him to the full-packed CIDG conference room where several reporters were waiting for their presentation. Manrique, clad in short pants and blue T-shirt, claimed he was denied due process because he did not want to be presented to the media.

CIDG officials said it was not the first time that Manrique acted violently over the arrests. They revealed that Manrique has also tried to intervene in police investigation on Pineda and Trestiza last Sunday morning. Manrique’s attempt to intervene in the investigation of Trestiza and Pineda prompted his men to dig deeper into his involvement in the case. Later on, the victims also identified Manrique as one of the their abductors, which prompted CIDG investigators to include him in the filing of kidnapping and illegal possession of firearms charges.

Manrique and his five companions detailed with the PDEA barged inside the investigation room of the CIDG-NCR office inside Camp Crame at around 5 a.m. last Sunday.