NCRPO relieves EPD chief

MANILA, Philippines — To give way to an impartial investigation, Eastern Police District chief Brig. Gen. Villamor Tuliao was relieved from his post Friday night after police officers assigned with the EPD’s District Special Operations Unit (DSOU) allegedly stole P75 million in cash and valuables of a Chinese businessman in Las Piñas City.

Maj. Gen. Anthony Aberin, National Capital Region Police Office director, relieved Tuliao as EPD director and named his deputy, Col. Leonard Luna, as officer in charge.

The EPD covers Pasig, Mandaluyong, Marikina and San Juan cities.

Aberin said Tuliao’s administrative relief is needed to allow an impartial investigation on the alleged irregular raid on the house of the businessman in Barangay Almanza Dos last Wednesday.

Although only eight officers directly took part in the operation, all 31 officers of the DSOU were relieved from their posts.

The eight officers were also disarmed and placed under restrictive custody.

A background initial investigation report showed the eight cops as high-level scalawags involved in nefarious activities such as robbery-extortion when they were assigned in Mandaluyong.

The Mandaluyong police chief previously sacked them from their posts and had them transferred to the EPD headquarters in Pasig City.

It is unclear how they regrouped as members of the DSOU.

From the investigation, Aberin said it appeared that the eight went to the businessman’s house under the pretense of serving a warrant of arrest.

“But their objective was really different,” Aberin said, noting that the arrested Chinese did not fit the description stated in the warrant.

Aberin said the eight officers – four staff sergeants, two corporals and two patrolmen – yesterday underwent inquest proceedings before the Las Piñas prosecutor’s office, where complaints for serious illegal detention, unlawful arrest and robbery were filed.

The police officers’ lawyer, Reginaldo Bucu, said the eight have insisted that they were merely “set up” in the incident. — EJ Macababbad