Napolcom dismisses 11 drug war cops

MANILA, Philippines — Eleven police officers have been dismissed from the service over the kidnapping of two people in anti-drug operations during the administration of former president Rodrigo Duterte in 2021, the National Police Commission reported yesterday.

Napolcom vice chairman Rafael Vicente Calinisan said the 11 include four policemen who were charged in the kidnapping and murder of cockfight enthusiasts or sabungeros, wherein gaming tycoon Charlie “Atong” Ang has been tagged as the mastermind.

The four are Lt. Col. Ryan Jay Orapa, Maj. Mark Philip Almedilla, Senior M/Sgt. Mark Anthony Manrique and S/Sgt. Edmon Muñoz.

The seven others are S/Sgts. Robert Allan Raz Jr. and Denar Roda; Cpls. Alric Natividad, Reynaldo Seno Jr. and Ronald John Lanaria, and Patrolmen Rufino Miguel Panghulan and Develyn Tapalla.

Calinisan said the 11 policemen were accused of kidnapping Dane Mark Carlos in Manila on Feb. 17, 2021 and Charles Dean Sotto in Las Piñas on March 24 of the same year. The 11 were all assigned at the time at the regional drug enforcement unit of the National Capital Region Police Office.

The 11 were found administratively liable for two counts of grave misconduct and another two for conduct unbecoming of a police officer.

The Napolcom decision was based on the complaints filed by Milagros Estacio and Elizabeth Sotto on Sept. 3, 2025.

Both women accused the police officers of kidnapping their sons during anti-drug operations. They also cited possible links between their cases and the disappearance of the sabungeros, which prompted the Napolcom to conduct an in-depth probe.

Given the gravity of the offenses and the presence of multiple administrative violations, Calinisan said the Napolcom imposed the maximum penalty of dismissal from the service along with the corresponding accessory penalties under existing rules.

He stressed that the Napolcom would never allow police scalawags to use their uniform to commit crimes.

In response to the Napolcom decision, Philippine National Police chief Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. said the PNP is standing firm in holding accountable scalawags in the police force.

“There is no place in the organization for abuse of authority and we will relentlessly pursue internal cleansing to ensure that only those worthy of the uniform remain in the service,” Nartatez said in a statement.