NCRPO calls for background check on would-be cops

MANILA, Philippines - All those applying to be police officers should be subjected to a thorough background investigation to prevent applicants with “criminal minds” from entering the police service, National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) chief Director Alan Purisima said yesterday.

He noted that several rookie policemen, including Police Officer 1 Ernesto Binayug – the prime suspect in the killing of a Chinese businesswoman in Binondo – were apparently involved in criminal activities before joining the police force.

Purisima said had the background check been conducted strictly, these policemen might have been prevented from joining the ranks of the Philippine National Police (PNP). He said there are instances when the results of the background investigation arrived after they had become full-fledged police officers.

“We encountered at least two or three cases wherein the policemen were found to have pending criminal cases but they still managed to enter the police service,” said Purisima, adding that they dismissed these policemen and charged them with falsification of public documents and fraudulent entry into the police force.

The NCRPO chief also urged PNP chief Director General Nicanor Bartolome to provide additional funding for the background investigation of all police applicants.

‘In the genes’

Binayug, who is assigned at the NCRPO, is the subject of a shoot-to-kill order by Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim for the killing of businesswoman Heidi Hsu, 28, and the wounding of her brother Herbert, 24, and father Tony, 67. His image was caught by a surveillance camera at one of the buildings along Lavezares street, where the victims were shot after a failed robbery attempt

Binayug is a cousin of Senior Inspector Joselito Binayug, who gained notoriety after he was caught on video torturing a robbery suspect at a police precinct in Asuncion, Tondo, Manila. Two of Senior Inspector Binayug’s co-accused in the case were his nephews, Police Officers 1 Nonito Binayug and Rex Binayug.

When asked why several Binayugs have been tagged in criminal activities, Purisima laughed and replied, “No comment.”

A senior NCRPO official, who requested anonymity, told The STAR that “there might be several loopholes in our recruitment processes but we are slowly plugging them. Definitely the Binayugs’ involvement in criminal activities has something to do with their genes and surroundings.”

The police official pointed out that Senior Inspector Binayug was a victim of robbery when he was still taking up criminology at the at the Philippine College of Criminology. Since becoming a policeman, Binayug has reportedly liked “torturing” robbery suspects, a practice accepted by residents covered by police stations where he assigned but not by the suspects’ relatives, the official said.