THE Police Regional Office (PRO-7)insisted that the group led by Joel Oyao Amistad who was killed in a shootout with police last Sunday is allegedly engaged in illegal drugs in Lapu-Lapu City.
“We are not generalizing all members of the Oyao family. It only came as a result of our validation of our findings with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency-7 that a group led by that certain person is engaged in illegal drugs,” Supt. Rex Derilo, acting chief of the Regional Intelligence Division (RID), said.
Amistad died in a police shootout a few hours after PO3 Antonio Inihao Jr. and PO3 Jasper Nuñez were ambushed in Barangay Calawisan, Lapu-Lapu City on Saturday. Inihao died while Nuñez sustained several gunshot wounds.
Rameses Villagonzalo, lawyer of the Oyao family, warned the police and media not to accuse the Oyao family of drug involvement lest they face charges.
But Derilo said the family can file libel charges against the police if they wanted to since it is their right to do so. Despite the family’s claims that Amistad didn’t resist arrest, Derilo said Amistad was armed and fired at the police.
Senior Insp. Alcon Escusora, chief of the Marigondon police precinct, said the Oyao drug group has been operating in Mactan island for sometime and several of them were already jailed and are facing charges.
Chief Insp. Mark Gifter Sucalit, chief of the Lapu-Lapu City Police Office’s City Anti-Illegal Drug Special Operations Task Group, said they seized more than P13 million worth of illegal drugs last year.