NCRPO cop nabbed in drug sting

MANILA, Philippines — A police officer said to be involved in the illegal drug trade was arrested in a sting in  Muntinlupa City on Monday.

Pat. Leo Valdez was arrested by personnel from the Integrity Monitoring and Enforcement Group at a residential compound in Barangay Putatan at around 10:05 p.m., Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Gen. Oscar Albayalde said yesterday.

Valdez, who is assigned with the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO)’s Regional Mobile Force Battalion, was caught with four sachets of methamphetamine hydrochloride or shabu.

Valdez sold shabu to a policeman posing as a drug buyer in exchange for P1,000.

An irate Albayalde scolded Valdez when a surveillance video of him sniffing shabu was shown during a press briefing at Camp Crame in Quezon City yesterday.

“Tingnan mo mukha mo, viral yan. Tingnan mo sarili mo, hindi ka nahiya (Look at your image, it’s gone viral. Look at yourself, you have no shame),” Albayalde shouted at Valdez.

Valdez entered the police service in 2007 but was dismissed in 2014 after he went on AWOL or absent without leave for illegal drug use.

He was reinstated in 2017 and was assigned at the NCRPO before his arrest.

Albayalde wanted to know how Valdez returned to the police force even if he was accused of a grave offense.

“Sino ang nagreinstate sa iyo? Saan ka nag-appeal (Who reinstated you? To whom did you appeal)?” he shouted at Valdez.

Albayalde has ordered the conduct of summary dismissal proceedings against Valdez.

Records from the Internal Affairs Service show that a total of 71 police officers were dismissed from the service since February 2017 while 13 were suspended and five were demoted. – Non Alquitran, Ralph Edwin Villanueva