CAMP Vicente Alagar clarified this afternoon that only one police officer tested positive for drug use and not four as previously bared by Brigadier Gen. Lawrence Coop to reporters Wednesday.
Yesterday, Coop announced to reporters in a forum that Alagar is preparing administrative cases against four police officers who tested positive for drug use.
Coop also bared to reporters that most of the administrative cases against police officers in Northern Mindanao are illegal drugs-related.
In a phone interview today, Police Regional Office-10 spokesperson P/Maj. Joann Navarro said only one policeman in the region tested positive for illegal drugs after the conduct of a random drug testing in some parts of Misamis Oriental last year.
As recorded in 2022, Navarro said, one policeman tested positive and two other policemen were arrested in separate drug-related incidents.
“One policeman was arrested in violation of the Comelec gun ban last year. Then that same year, he was also arrested for robbery charges in Misamis Oriental,” Navarro said.
She added that during the arrest for robbery charges, authorities found a sachet of suspected shabu in the possession of the policeman.
Navarro refused to divulge the exact town in the province where the policeman was arrested.
The other police officer was arrested in a buy-bust operation in Gingoog City last November. Navarro said the officer in question has the rank of Police Staff Sergeant.
Navarro said she is not sure if the two arrested policemen tested positive for drug use after their separate arrests.
However, she is certain that the police officer who tested positive in a random drug test and the policeman arrested for robbery charges have already been dismissed from service.
While the police staff sergeant who was arrested in Gingoog in a buy-bust operation is still being investigated.
“Pero paingon ra gihapon na sa dismissal,” Navarro opined.
