Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Junard Chan talks to Eric. | Photo from the FB page of Junard “Ahong” Chan
CEBU CITY, Philippines – Two police officers and a police asset are in hot water after they allegedly assaulted a criminology student, whom they considered a suspect in a burglary case.
The concerned police officers are assigned at the Marigondon Police Station in Lapu-Lapu City.
Police Lieutenant Colonel Christian Torres, spokesperson for the Lapu-Lapu City Police Office (LCPO), said that they are conducting a motu propio investigation on the incident.
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Torres said that they are also waiting for the victim, a certain Eric, to visit LCPO to lodge a formal complaint against the suspects and to also give his account on what actually happened at dawn on Friday, October 4.
“Atong ipursige nga makuhaan nato ug pamahayag kay dili nato i-tolerate kining ingon-ani nga buhat sa atong pulis,” Torres said.
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Burglary suspect?
Eric, a resident of Brgy. Marigondon, has already sought the assistance of Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Junard Chan.
The criminology student works as a house caretaker to support his studies.
Torres said that the house that he was watching was said to have been burglarized last October 4, by three still unidentified suspects, who took a bicycle and a chain saw.
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Eric, he said, gave Marigondon police two conflicting accounts on what happened. At first, he allegedly told the police that he was inside the house when the alleged burglary happened, but he did not resist because of fear for his life. He claimed to have been mauled by the burglars.
Together with the house owner, Eric visited the Marigondon Police Station on Friday night to report the burglary. He then told the police that he was not around when it happened.
Because of the inconsistencies in his statements, he ended up being questioned by the police and accused of taking part in the burglary.
Torres said that two police officers allegedly brought Eric to a room at the second floor of the police station for questioning and for the conduct of a drug test which reportedly yielded positive results.
Moreover, the suspects alleged forced Eric to confess his involvement in the burglary and divulge the location of the stolen items.
Interrogation
During the interrogation the two police officers alleged struck Eric’s hands with an arnis stick while they also repeatedly slapped his face.
Eric was released from police custody also on Friday evening.
In a social media post on Sunday, Mayor Chan ordered the chief of the Marigondon Police Station to look into Eric’s case.
“Atong gisaad ni Eric nga mahatagan og hustisya ang pait nga [iyang] nasinati,” Chan said.
In addition, Chan said that he created a group that will conduct a separate investigation on the incident.