PHILIPPINES: Police falsely implicate persons in drug charges to boost image

Dear Friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is deeply concerned about the police’s torture and planting of evidence on suspected drug users and sellers in General Santos City. The police operation was allegedly conducted to boost the police image in their campaign against illegal drugs.

CASE DETAILS: (Based on interviews and documentation by the AHRC)

On 27 July 2016, Emie Bermoy Jr. “Alias Jun-Jun” (25), Vincent Ballesteros (18) and Peter Paul Delumes (30), were arrested while drinking inside the house of Bermoy in Barangay Fatima, General Santos City. According to Police Officer 1 (PO1) Richard Tamayo, Bermoy is “one of the watch listed drugs personalities in the area”. The area the police claimed that Bermoy was operating in the use and sale of illegal drugs was in Barangay (village) Fatima, in General Santos City.

According to Bermoy, on that day he was drinking with Delumes and Ballesteros inside the compound of his house in Purok 20, Barangay Fatima. At that time, Sunil Salah (24), another person whom the police arrested, was not present. He was with Bermoy’s two children. He was arrested however, soon after he came inside the house and was seen by the police. Contrary to the police’s claim, there was no bust operation that occurred. In his testimony AHRC-UAC-107-2016-02.pdf, dated 4 August 2016, p. 2, Bermoy said:

The policemen just barged into our house and then we were arrested and were brought in the police station. We were then questioned as to where we source our illegal drugs.

In the police’s version of the story, P01 Jordan Sanate, a policeman attached to the City Anti-Illegal Drugs Special Operations Task Group (CAIDSOTG), of the General Santos City Police Office (GSCPO), claims that at 4 p.m. on that day he was tipped off by their confidential informant (name he did not disclose) that “he has an ongoing illegal drugs transaction”. Between 4-6 p.m., Sanate claimed he immediately informed his superior, Police Senior Inspector (PSI) Oliver Pauya, chief of the CAIDSOTG, about the information he received. Other police officers involved in the operation were: P01 Tamayo and P01 Glenn Alicarte. Each of the policemen were given tasks during the operation. Sanate acted as poseur buyer and to accompany his confidential informant; P01 Tamayo, arresting officer; P01 Alicarte, as the team leader, photographer, and tasked of coordinating their operation with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA), Region 12. The PDEA is a special anti-illegal drugs unit of the Philippine National Police (PNP).

When the police went into the suspects’ house, PO1 Sanate and PO1 Tamayo, led by PO1 Alicarte, arrested Bermoy, Ballesteros and Dellumes. But interviews by the AHRC with Bermoy and Salah revealed that there was no bust operation that happened, contrary to the police’s claim. The three persons, Bermoy, Ballesteros and Delumes, were only drinking when the police came. Salah, who came to Bermoy’s house to send his children, was not even with the group, but the police also arrested him. After their arrest, the four suspects were taken to the GSCPO headquarters, at the Camp Fermin G. Lira. There, the arresting police officers tortured Bermoy and Salah.

In his written testimony given to the AHRC, Salah described how he was tortured (Read the full text here).

“Gidala mi sa baraks ug kami gipugos nga patug anun nga kinsa daw ang gikuhaan ug maong butanga (shabu) ug wala jud ko nitug an kay wala ko kabalo. Hantod sa niabot na ako gikuryentehan sa mga kamot ug akong paa para pa tug anon.” (They took us to the General Santos City Police Office (GSCPO) headquarters. There, they forced us to disclose our supposed source of drugs. I could not tell them anything because I also do not know. They applied electric shocks on my hands and feet to force me to provide them information they need) (unofficial translation)”.

Meanwhile, Bermoy also described in his testimony to the AHRC how the police tortured him when they interrogated him:

“Gidala kami sa baraks og samtang kami naa didto gi isa-isa kami ug pangutana kung kinsa ang ulo sa maong tag-iya sa butang nga ginatawag ug shabu wala man kami matug kanila kundili ang tinood. Ila pa jud me nga gikurintihan para patuganon pero wala man jud me matog-an.” (They took us to General Santos City Police Office (GSCPO). There, they asked each of us about the source of illegal drugs. We cannot tell them anything but only the truth (that we do not know). They electrocuted us to force us to confess) (unofficial translation).

In Salah and Bermoy’s testimony, they identified P01 Sanate as the police officer who tortured them while they were questioned inside the CAIDSOTG office. Although the police took them to the doctor for examination, the doctor only conducted a superficial medication examination. In custody, the policemen tortured them by applying electric shocks on their hands and legs for about 10 minutes. They forced them to admit that the illegal drugs the police placed on their table while they were drinking are from them. The purpose is to justify the entry of the police in Bermoy’s house, their arrest and filing of charges, as resulting from a bust operation.

The police also forced them to admit that they were using illegal drugs (pot session) at the time of their arrest. After they were tortured, they were taken to another community police station in Barangay Fatima, where they were briefly detained before they were remanded to prison. The claims of the four persons on the legality of their arrests, detention and filing of charges, and the questionsregarding the credibility of the policemen who arrested the suspects on alleged buy bust, had some merits. One of the police officer, P01 Alicarte, was disclosed by President Rodrigo Duterte as one of the “policemen who were involved in drugs trade”. For details, read this report: “List of policemen announced by Pres. Duterte as Drug Protectors.”

Prior to his arrest, Salah voluntarily surrendered to Anecito P. Lopez Jr., the municipal mayor in Maasim on 11 July 2016. Under the Duterte administration’s campaign to eradicate illegal drug use and trade, persons who are self-confessed drug dependents and drugs dealers, are encouraged to surrender to the authorities. For fear of his life due to the unprecedented increase of extrajudicial killings related to illegal drugs, Salah surrendered to the authorities. His expectation was he would not be targeted for killings and be given the opportunity to be rehabilitated.

According to the suspects, the police filed charges for the violation of Republic Act 9165, under section 13, for possession of dangerous drugs, section 14, for possession of equipment used in consumption of illegal drugs.

SUGGESTED ACTION:

Kindly send letters to the concerned authorities listed below requesting their immediate intervention in this case.

The AHRC is writing a separate letter to the UN Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment in this matter.

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