THE detention of a suspected communist leader, arrested over the weekend, in a less defended civilian facility is causing a security nightmare to the local police authorities.

Acting City Police Director Noel Armilla said they asked the court Monday to transfer the custody of Alfredo Mapano from the Misamis Oriental Provincial Jail to a military facility “equipped” to house a “high-risk political dissident.”

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A “heightened alert” was immediately raised hours after the suspected rebel leader’s arrest, Armilla said, underscoring the security risk involved in Mapano’s arrest.

Mapano, 55, was placed under police custody immediately after his arrest, but his lawyers were able to convince Regional Trial Court Branch 17 Presiding Judge Florencia Abbu to transfer him to the Cagayan de Oro-based provincial jail.

Armilla said the Union of People’s Lawyers in Mindanao (UPLM), which represents the suspected top ranking insurgent, had “encouraged danger” to the city when they had their client transferred to the provincial jail. 

Mapano, alias Pedro Panis, was nabbed by a joint team of police and National Intelligence Coordinating Agency (Nica) personnel Saturday evening.
The Cagayan de Oro-based Fourth Infantry Division (4th ID) described Mapano as the "regional leader" of the NPA operating in North Central Mindanao. The military said Mapano commanded at least five rebel sub-groups located in Agusan provinces, Bukidnon and Misamis Oriental.

Moments after his arrest, Nica personnel allegedly transported Mapano to their headquarters inside 4th ID’s Camp Evangelista, and returned him an hour later after his lawyer protested.

Frederico Gapuz, Mapano’s lawyer, is expected to oppose the police’s bid to have his client transferred to a military facility on that account.

Armilla insisted that suspected rebel leader’s continued detention at the provincial jail would expose the city to an “imminent threat,” noting that the facility is located in a densely populated area in the downtown.

“We recommend that Mapano be placed under the custody of AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines) specifically the Intelligence Security Group that is equipped with sufficient detention facility for political crimes,” a court filing initiated by Cocpo reads.

It also asked the court to put Mapano in Cocpo’s custody while the petition is being heard.

“He (Mapano) is the no. 1 man of the CPP (Communist Party of the Philippines) in the region. That’s why he is to be considered as a high-risk detainee, thus would need maximum security. With his important designation in the CPP, he is prone for rescue operations of his comrades in the New People’s Army,” Armilla told the Sun.Star.