DAVAO CITY—The Police Regional Office-XI has vehemently refuted a viral social media post about a police checkpoint supposedly in Davao City where policemen tried to plant drug evidence inside a vehicle.
“It is not true, it is fake. Gusto nako ipaabot sa tanan (I would like to tell everyone) that everytime na naay ginahimo na Comelec checkpoint or regular checkpoint naka monitor na sila sa amoang Regional Integrated Command Center,” says Philippine National Police PRO-XI spokesperson P/Major Catherine dela Rey.
(Everytime we conduct Comelec or regular checkpoint it is monitored at our Regional Integrated Command Center).
She said that personnel manning the checkpoint have body worn cameras or any alternative recording device to monitor their activity as they are being recorded live at the Regional Integrated Command Center.
“It is very impossible that it happened, that’s fake news,” dela Rey said.
PNP checkpoints are well-lighted, with signages and manned by uniformed personnel. Dela Rey said if there are complaints the public can bring it to their office.
In the viral social media post allegedly shared by a doctor in a group chat, a man was driving to his home one evening, along the way he was stopped by a policeman who told him to open his trunk. After being let go and a several meters away the driver decided to check the trunk and saw the planted drug paraphernalia which he threw away. He would later pass another checkpoint near a place named as Stargate. The policemen in the checkpoint would again check for the trunk only to find the planted drugs gone.
Meanwhile, the Davao City Police Office slammed the fake viral post and vowed legal action for those responsible for the malicious online posting.
“Kung naga conduct ta ug checkpoint wala ta naga pa-open ug trank sa salakyan and then only plain view so wala ta nagapanaog sa mga tawo sulod sa salakyan para atong kapkapan,” DCPO spokersperson P/Capt. Hazel Tuazon said.
(If we conduct checkpoint, we do not ask them to open the trunk of their car, its only plain view. We do not ask the occupants of the car to disembark and frisk them).
Tuazon also said there is no place called Stargate in Davao. She said that the post is a rehashed fake story designed to besmirched the reputation of the DCPO.
She said they can monitor through the RICC if there are violations at police checkpoints.
“Our Davao City Police Office director Police Col. Hansel M. Marantan will not tolerate any irregularities done by our PNP personnel,” Tuazon said. (PIA/RGA)
