CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY — Police filed several charges Monday against three agents of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency in Region 10 (PDEA-10) for allegedly assaulting five taxi drivers.
Also charged was a former PDEA agent, according to Senior Insp. Breccia Ruth Townend, the Police Station 7 chief.
Townend said the four men were charged with physical injuries and grave threats, including illegal discharge of firearms.
Townend identified the PDEA agents as Ramil Salido, Randy Doliente, and Jestoni Tugbongbanua. The fourth suspect was identified as a certain Marvin Pabalate, a neighbor of Salido in Barangay Pagatpat here and a former PDEA agent.
She said the five taxi drivers – Christopher Ferrer, Mark Ganabes, Allan Monicit, Fiel Tagupa and Gaudioso Dalaygon – claimed that they were accosted by the suspects inside the Westplain Fatima Subdivision at 5:30 p.m. on Saturday.
The suspects were allegedly armed with an unspecified high-power firearm and a .45-caliber pistol.
Townend said they suspected that the agents were under the influence of liquor when the incident happened.
Salido and Doliente are assigned at the PDEA office in Iligan City, while Tugbongbanua is assigned in Bukidnon.
Salido is a resident of Pagatpat, where the incident took place.
PDEA-10 Director Wilkins Villanueva vowed that the agency will not tolerate abuse from its ranks.
“We will dismiss them if it will be (found that this was) their fault. I don’t condone abusive agents,” Villanueva said, adding the three agents have been temporarily relieved.
Based on an initial police report, Ferrer was allegedly confronted by Salido, apparently angry that he showed up in front of their residence purportedly to fetch the PDEA agent’s wife, who allegedly had an ongoing verbal argument with her husband at the time.
Other four drivers arrived in the place to check on Ferrer’s situation, and this was when the other PDEA agent-suspects–including Pabalat– confronted the drivers that led to a scuffle.
The suspects are temporarily detained at the Camp Maharlika detention facility of the Cagayan de Oro City Police Office. (/PNA)
