Guimaras cops cleared of grave misconduct, other raps
Jordan, Guimaras -- One senior police officer and two others, all organic members of the town's police office here were cleared of administrative charges. Slapped with grave misconduct, dishonesty and gross neglect of duty, the Regional Investigation and Detective Management Division (RIDMD) dropped the cases against Senior Police Officer 1 (SPO1) Nelson Deslate, Police Officer 2 (PO2) Jun Gonzales and PO2 Bobby Habana.
Docketed as Admin. Case No. RIDMD-05-11-07, a panel of police probers moved to drop and close the cases "for lack of merit." The trio was charged by a security aide of a gubernatorial candidate in this province following the arrest made just after midnight of April 22nd.
Complainant Rommel Sanchez said the three cops threatened to shoot him with the orders to surrender his firearm. Sanchez explained that he is a private detective with permit to carry a firearm yet said weapon was allegedly taken by the police officers. The incident, he added, happened at the midst of his duty in the branch office of the Big Lens Detective Services in Barangay San Miguel here.
In an eight-page decision based on witness accounts and thorough police investigation, the RIDMD ruled for the police officers.
"It is crystal clear from the foregoing facts stated as supported by the documents and affidavits attached that what happened on that fateful morning was undoubtedly a plain, simple and legitimate Police Operation after having been called to respond to a commotion in a nearby area," excerpts of the case dismissal went.
Principal witness for the accused cops was the owner of a local bar who sought police assistance after the trouble caused by the armed-complainant. Probers also took into account the commendation made by the local election officer for the trio's "exemplary and untiring effort" in ridding the province of loose firearms.
Further still, the probers discovered that no such detective agency is licensed to operate in the Municipality of Jordan.
Per verification, the RIDMD probers said, "there is no such business establishment known as Branch Office of Big Lens Detective and Protective Services that is located in Jag Building, San Miguel, Jordan, Guimaras."
"Indeed, the testimony in order to be credible must not only come from a credible witness but must be credible in itself," the decision further went. "Granting arguendo that such incident took place, a question may be asked; "How did we know that he has a service firearm, thus prompting them to demand the same to surrender, if he is concealing the same as Private Detective? Was it not because he was brandishing and publicly exhibiting the said firearm and demanded the surrender of the same?"
As such, no grave misconduct occurred, no dishonest nor gross neglect of duty happened. What it was, top cops now said, was one legitimate police action and "no reasonable ground" to believe that respondent-cops committed the purported offenses. Similar criminal charges were likewise dismissed.