The National Police Commission (Napolcom) said it is ready to deliberate the administrative case against the 12 police officers allegedly involved in the abduction of at least 34 cockfighting enthusiasts (sabungeros).
‘We’re finished. The draft resolution is already on our desks, but we haven’t sat down to deliberate on it and release it precisely because we’re waiting for the DOJ resolution,’ Napolcom Vice Chairperson Rafael Calinisan said in an interview with reporters at their Quezon City office on Friday.
‘We will coordinate with the DOJ. We will wait for the proper time to release our decision in the sabong cases so that justice isn’t empty in the Philippines,’ Calinisan added.
Last June, whistleblower Julie Patidongan (also known as Dondon or Totoy) claimed gaming tycoon Atong Ang hired the 12 police officers to kidnap and kill the sabungeros for allegedly cheating in the games.
Patidongan and several family members of the missing sabungeros filed an administrative complaint before Napolcom against the officers last July 14, and the agency formally filed the charges against the cops last July 29.
On the criminal side, on Tuesday, the Department of Justice said it had completed its preliminary investigation into the charges against Ang and 60 others and had submitted the case for resolution.
Ang denied allegations last July, calling them ‘entirely false and without basis,’ and accusing Patidongan of attempting to extort P300 million from him, supposedly in exchange for not implicating the gaming tycoon in the case.