‘Rogue cops recycle confiscated drugs’

MANILA, Philippines — Illegal drugs seized during law enforcement operations were apparently being stolen during the Aquino administration by some rogue officers of the Philippine National Police (PNP) to resell on the streets, a former police official said.

Baguio City Mayor Benjamin Magalong yesterday recounted before the Senate Blue Ribbon committee his experience in drug “recycling” done by corrupt law enforcers as well as the powerful influence of convicted drug traffickers inside the New Bilibid Prison (NBP) when he headed the PNP Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG).

Magalong described what he called the “agaw-bato” scheme where corrupt PNP officers inform their immediate superior about an impending anti-drug operation, usually a “buy-bust” against a big time Chinese drug trafficker.

He said he believes some of the rogue PNP officers are still on active duty and disclosed more details, including the names of the police officers, during an executive session with senators during a break in the hearing.

In the drug recycling scheme, an unsuspecting superior, who coordinates with other units to prevent “misencounters,” is told to wait until the operation is over.

The rogue police officers may either call in the operation as “negative” or not yielding anything but were actually able to seize drugs, or report it as successful but with lower yield. Either way, the pilfered drugs are taken to a safehouse where it will stay until sold, and the profits divided among those involved in the seizure.

Sometimes, the unscrupulous law enforcers make money twice in the operation by kidnapping Chinese suspects and asking for ransom from their families. Once paid, another Chinese is presented as a suspect to the higher ups, the former CIDG chief said.

He cited a case where a P50-million ransom was paid for the release of a drug trafficker.