Poe lauds PNP for rob suspect’s arrest

MANILA, Philippines - Sen. Grace Poe lauded yesterday the arrest of Edgar Tuazon, the alleged leader of a robbery and car theft gang, in Pasig City.

Poe, who has been conducting hearings on the modernization of the Philippine National Police (PNP), said the arrest shows that information sharing among the police and the bureaus of investigation, customs and immigration can help better crime prevention.

The police was alerted after Tuazon, who faces a string of robbery cases, tried to secure a police clearance from the Pasig City Police Office on Thursday. He is also the subject of a warrant of arrest issued by the Regional Trial Court Branch 10 of San Juan City in September 1996.

“Mr. Tuazon was able to elude arrest for almost 19 years but thanks to the vigilance of our policemen and the effectiveness of an automated records system, the law has finally caught up with him,” said Poe, who chairs the Senate Committee on Public Order and Dangerous Drugs.

Poe said the PNP should intensify further its program to computerize its records system as this proves to be effective.

She also expects an even better police database when the information-sharing system being worked out by the PNP with the Bureau of Immigration, Bureau of Customs, and the National Bureau of Investigation will be fully implemented. The four agencies recently signed a memorandum of agreement for the implementation of the national justice information system.

“We have to take advantage of the advances in technology to strengthen our campaign against crime,” Poe said.

She hopes the PNP leadership would make good on its plan to develop a national police clearance system that uses a consolidated electronic files and records of criminals.

In the recent Senate hearings, Poe tackled the need for the PNP to modernize its equipment and facilities and to provide additional benefits for its uniformed and non-uniformed personnel.