7 Manila cops charged with robbery, extortion

MANILA, Philippines - The Manila Police District yesterday filed charges of robbery-extortion against the head of the MPD’s anti-car theft unit and six others tagged by a Pakistani casino financier of arresting and robbing him last Sept. 19.

Senior Inspector Rommel Geneblazo was charged with robbery and violation of Republic Act 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act before the Manila prosecutor’s office along with Senior Police Officers 1 Gerardo Rivera, Michael Dingding, Jay Perturbos and Jonathan Moreno; and Police Officers 2 Renato Ochinang and Marvin dela Cruz.

Senior Inspector Arsenio Riparip, head of the MPD’s general assignment and investigation section, said the seven police officers are also facing administrative charges.

Riparip said the seven suspects and another unidentified police officer remain at large.

“So far, there are no surrender feelers. Probably they will just wait for the filing of the charges before they come out. They will be reassigned to the National Capital Regional Police Office following their relief,” Riparid said.

Geneblazo was replaced by Chief Inspector Francisco Vargas as head of the anti-car theft section.

In his complaint, Kamran Khan Dawood, 39, said he and his Chinese friend Hua Long Wu and four Filipino companions were having a business meeting at the Manila Pavilion hotel at around 1:30 a.m. on Sept. 19 when the policemen arrived and told them that four cars – three Toyota Camrys and a Mazda 323 – he owned were included in an alert for stolen vehicles.

Dawood said the police officers brought them to the MPD headquarters along United Nations Avenue and threatened that they would be charged with kidnapping if they would not cooperate.

The Pakistani said he and Hua had a hard time talking to the policemen due to language barriers. The police told one of his Filipino friends, Bernardo Cayat, that they would be released in exchange for P300,000.

Dawood said he refused because he has documents to prove that he owns the vehicles. But Hua was intimidated and haggled before finally giving P100,000 to Cayat, who handed the money to the policemen.

Dawood said he sought the help of a policeman assigned at Camp Crame, who accompanied them to the MPD general assignment and investigation section. 

He identified the policemen through the photos posted at the MPD headquarters.

Willing to surrender

In a text message to The STAR yesterday, Geneblazo said, “We will come out with documents to defend ourselves.”

He denied in an earlier interview that they robbed the victims. He said the operation, which started on the night of Sept. 19 and lasted until before dawn the next day, was legitimate.

“As far as we are concerned, the complainant is lying. The operation was entered into our blotter and the black Camry was included in the alarm of the LTO (Land Transportation Office),” he said.

MPD policemen said they had tried but failed to contact their colleagues implicated in the case.

“Maybe they are still trying to figure out what to do. I’m sure sooner or later they will come out to face the charges,” a police officer, who requested anonymity, said.

SUV missing

Meanwhile, a source told The STAR that Geneblazo should also explain why a sport utility vehicle (SUV) confiscated by operatives of the anti-car theft section is missing.

According to the source, the vehicle – a Mitsubishi Montero – was used by Geneblazo’s men in one of their operations but the SUV reportedly disappeared while parked in front of a convenience store just across the MPD headquarters.

“Some policemen get relieved for minor reasons. The chief of the anti-car theft section and his men obviously erred when the vehicle went missing, but they were retained in their posts until this happened,” the police officer said, referring to the complaint of Dawood.