MANILA Mayor Francisco “Isko” Moreno Domagoso ordered on Friday the immediate relief of the Manila Police District’s (MPD) Drug Enforcement Unit (DEU) following allegations of extortion and misconduct.
“There is no place for dishonesty in the city of Manila, not even in the ranks of the police. We cannot let abusers go unpunished, especially when ordinary people are being tortured,” the mayor said in Filipino.
He added that the relief order was necessary to help restore public confidence in law enforcement even as the case was under investigation.
The sanction stemmed from a delivery rider who sought help from the National Police Commission (Napolcom) alleging that he and a companion were arbitrarily arrested by seven operatives of the DEU.
The complainant said he was eventually released, but the arresting team took ₱9,000 from his GCash account and seized his companion’s motorcycle.
MPD chief Brig. Gen. Arnold Abad relieved the unit and directed its members to report to the Personnel Holding and Accounting Unit (PHAU).
For his part, Napolcom Commissioner Vicente Calinisan noted discrepancies between the riders’ sworn statements and the police report dated Sept. 10 asserting that the two men had been arrested on drug-related charges.
The seven policemen involved in the incident face multiple administrative charges including grave misconduct, grave irregularity in the performance of duty, and conduct unbecoming of a police officer.
