Police chief saddened by death, says all efforts gone to waste

Chief Inspector Jovie Espenido, Albuera police chief, expressed shock over the death of mayor Rolando Espinosa Sr., saying that this weakens the cases filed against suspected illegal drug protectors in the region.

BAYBAY, Leyte — Letting out a deep sigh, Albuera police chief Jovie Espenido expressed dismay over the death of Mayor Rolando Espinosa Sr. inside the provincial jail in Baybay City.

Espenido admitted that Espinosa’s death may weaken the cases filed against those suspected of providing protection to the illegal drugs operation of the mayor’s son, Kerwin.

He also feared that local and police officials whom he sued based on Espinosa’s affidavit might also get back at him.

It was Espenido who convinced Espinosa to execute an affidavit, identifying those involved in his son’s illegal drugs operation in exchange for police protection.

After executing the affidavit, the mayor stayed in Espenido’s office for close to two months until Oct. 5 when Espinosa was transferred to the sub-provincial jail in Baybay City to face charges of illegal drugs and illegal possession of firearms.

Espenido said the mayor’s lawyer had asked Judge Carlos Arguelles of the Regional Trial Court of Baybay to return the custody of Espinosa back to the Albuera police where he would be safer.

But the court, Espenido said, had not acted on the request as the reason for the transfer was seen to be valid.

Espenido said that the efforts to convince the mayor to spill the beans on his son’s operations seemed to have gone to waste with the killing of Espinosa.

“I wanted him to live because he could have helped us a lot in our campaign against illegal drugs. He knew how vast the operations of his son was,” he said.

“He is dead. We no longer have a witness who has a first hand knowledge on the illegal drug operations of his son. All our efforts amount to nothing now,” he lamented.

Espenido said he also felt sad that the man who followed the process of law by submitting himself to authorities was killed inside the jail.

Mayor Espinosa was a vital witness to the charges filed by Espenido against 33 police officers, seven government officials and seven private individuals at the Office of the Ombudsman, the prosecutors’ office, and the Philippine National Police.

Among those charged were Sen. Leila de Lima who was accused of receiving money from Kerwin and Vice Mayor Jonah John Ungab of Ronda town, Cebu.

Ungab admitted receiving money from Kerwin since he was the latter’s lawyer.

Ungab said he was surprised when he learned yesterday from online reports that Mayor Espinosa had been killed.

“I was really shocked,” he told Cebu Daily News over the phone.

Espinosa’s older brother, Ramon, expressed dismay at Director General Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa who, he said, had promised that nothing bad would happen to the mayor if he surrendered.

“General Dela Rosa vowed that nothing bad will happen to my brother. But why was my brother killed? General Dela Rosa should have done something to secure my brother because he’s the head of all policemen,” Ramon said in Cebuano.

“I do not understand what is happening with our government. I thought we now have a good president. But some people around him are abusing their power. Only few are trustworthy. I hope the President and General Dela Rosa will do something in the wake of my brother’s death,” he added.

Ramon said his brother told him that he was not the one who made the affidavit, and its contents did not come from him.

“One time, I asked my brother, ‘Did you really make the affidavit?’ And he told me, the affidavit was ready-made. It was prepared by someone else, and I was just asked to affix my signature on it,” he said.

Ramon surmised that some police officials prepared Mayor Espinosa’s affidavit.

Mayor Espinosa was the fifth of seven siblings from Cebu City. Ramon said Mayor Espinosa’s family transferred to Albuera, Leyte in the 1980s to take care of parcels of land owned by their mother.

Mayor Espinosa’s son Kerwin grew up in Barangay Hipodromo in Cebu City.

He was arrested for selling illegal drugs and was detained at the Cebu City Jail in 2008.