The National Police Commission (Napolcom) filed administrative charges against Police Col. Roland Vilela – ex-husband of former Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) general manager Royina Garma – over alleged ‘ill-gotten wealth.’
Garma allegedly masterminded the 2020 killing of PCSO board secretary Wesley Barayuga.
In a press briefing at the Napolcom central office in Quezon City on Tuesday, Napolcom Inspection, Monitoring and Investigation Service (IMIS) Director Edman Pares said Vilela was charged with two counts of grave misconduct, two counts of conduct unbecoming of a police officer; and a count of grave neglect of duty.
‘The misconduct charge shows how the respondent had ill-gotten wealth,’ Pares explained at the press briefing.
The Napolcom IMIS director cited last year’s House of Representatives quad committee testimony of Police Capt. Delfinito Anuba, whom Vilela allegedly tasked to convert large sums of pesos into United States (US) dollars and send them via diplomatic channels.
Garma allegedly sent P50 million to Vilela, a police attache in the US at the time.
However, at the House mega panel last Sept. 27, Vilela maintained that his account only had his monthly salary as a police officer and attache.
Neglect charge
Why the neglect of duty charge? Pares claimed Vilela did not attend a hearing of the House mega panel, later clarifying in a message to the Inquirer that it was the 15th public hearing of the quad committee last June 9.
‘One of the things we are considering is to file a grave neglect of duty case against him because our quad comm, during their investigation, is performing a quasi-judicial function,’ Pares said prior to the filing of the complaint.
The Inquirer is still reviewing the House’s records as to whether Vilela was summoned but failed to appear before the mega panel.