CEBU CITY – Police have warned cops not to engage in criminality and illegal activities as it intensify the campaign against rogue members following President Rodrigo Duterte’s threat to run after scalawags in the service.
Just this week, police arrested PO1 Argel Fuentes, assigned at Cebu City’s Police Station 2, after allegedly robbing a resident of Subangdaku in Mandaue City.
Fuentes was nabbed by members of the Subangdaku Police Station. Chief Supt. Debold Sinas, the regional police commander, said Fuentes initial investigation showed the cop was allegedly involved in seven other robberies in Subangdaku.
“If his involvement in the other robbery incidents is established, we would be filing multiple robbery charges against him (Fuentes),” he said.
Police Station 2 commander Chief Insp. Maria Theresa Macatangay said Fuentes was assigned on beat patrol last week and exhibited some kind of a peculiar behavior. She said Fuentes was reprimanded for transferring the police outpost at Fuente Osmeña circle to another area.
Macatangay said they have also received reports that Fuentes also threatened a resident of Barangay Sambag recently. Fuentes was on a vacation leave when police arrested him. He is now detained at the Subangdaku Police Station.
Fuentes’ arrest came after the series of police operations in Metro Manila where several rogue cops had been arrested by their colleagues.
The latest of this involved the arrests of Taguig policemen PO1 Bryan Amir Bajoof, PO1 Paolo Ocampo and the leader of the KFR group, PO2 Joey Maru and the killing of PO1 Gerardo Ancheta — who are said to be into kidnap-for-ransom activities. (Luel Galarpe)
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