In this August 2020 photo, six men are detained after they were caught in an illegal gambling activity. | file photo
CEBU CITY, Philippines — The strict implementation of the ‘No Take Policy’ of the Philippine National Police (PNP) was considered as the biggest factor for the 2,506 successful arrests for illegal gambling operations in Central Visayas in two months.
Police Brigadier General Roque Eduardo Vega, director of the Police Regional Office in Central Visayas (PRO-7), further appeals to the public to report to their respective police stations any presence of illegal gambling operations in their area, including those engaged in illegal cockfighting, illegal operations of numbers game, among others.
“Nanawagan ako sa publiko na magpunta sa malapit na istasyon at isumbong ang mga illegal na pasugalan sa inyong lugar. May mga hotline numbers tayo sa mga istasyon at huwag mag atubiling mag report gamit ang texts at Facebook page natin – Police Regional Office 7 para ma aksyonan agad ang inyong reklamo,” Vega stated in his press release.
The “No Take Policy” of the PNP has been implemented for years already and this aims to keep policemen away from receiving or taking any money from illegal drugs and gambling activities, not only in this region, but nationwide.
As stated in their press release, according to data from the Regional Anti-Illegal Gambling Monitoring Center (RAIGMC) of PRO-7, a total of 2,506 individuals in 1,152 police operations were arrested in the region for illegal gambling. These operations were conducted by different city and provincial offices.
These arrests happened during the two-month crackdown that started from September 29 to December 9, 2021. Around P314,882.75 bet cash and various illegal gambling paraphernalia were also confiscated from these operations.
Further, among said operations, Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) recorded the most number of arrests with 876 in its 529 operations. This was followed by the Cebu Police Provincial Office (CPPO) with 672 arrests from its 253 operations.
Also, Negros Oriental PPO had 389 arrests in its 141 operations, Mandaue City Police Office (MCPO) reported 243 arrests from 108 operations. Bohol PPO with 200 arrests in its 71 operations followed by Lapu-Lapu City Police Office with 102 arrests in its 38 operations conducted, and lastly, Siquijor PPO with 23 arrests from 11 operations.
Meanwhile, a joint operation by the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group Regional Field Office 7 (CIDG-RFU7) together with Regional Special Operations Group (RSOG-7), Regional Intelligence Unit (RIU-7), and City Intelligence Unit (CIU) of Mandaue and Cebu City launched its massive operation against illegal numbers game, locally known as “Swertres”, on November 25 in Barangay Labogon and Basak in Mandaue City. The operation resulted in the arrest of 20 individuals.
/bmjo
READ: Drop in illegal gambling violators noted in Cebu City