THE Davao City Police Office has its job cut out for it and we expect them to work fast following the disturbing images shared over Facebook of a robbery suspect, handcuffed after allegedly being caught robbing a house of a policeman at SIR Phase 2 along Sandawa Road, Matina on June 5, and another photo of the body found at Punta Dumalag, wearing exactly the same clothes as the robbery suspect. Both the robbery suspect and recovered body were wearing a black and white checkered shorts and black t-shirt with I (heart) Davao print.
The body, its head wrapped with packaging tape and cloth and both hands and feed tied, was found washed up on the beach of Cleanergy Park in Punta Dumalag, barangay Matina Aplaya at around 2:40 p.m. of June 15, 2018.
A Facebook user posted photos of the suspect leaning against a wall of a house apparently that of the policeman as she wrote, "Ang gikawatan pjud silingan namo na police (He robbed the house of our neighbor who is a policeman)!"
Another Facebook user posted a photo showing the alleged robber, already handcuffed, with a man guiding him out of the gate in a police jersey.
Talomo Police Station head Chief Insp. Ronald Lao said they are investigating the case and are still trying to identify the body.
While the comments were like that of lynch mobs wishing death on the suspect, the fact remains that he was not subjected to due process. To have surfaced ten days later dead, casts suspicion on the "silingan namo na police".
That policeman has to be investigated on and made to answer for the surfacing of the body, which from the looks of the photos being share had something wrapped around the waist, as if it was intended to be weighed down at the bottom of the ocean. Except that, it didn't, and was washed up ashore instead.
A summarily executed body being washed ashore after being caught by a policeman in his house somehow shows how a policeman has chosen to be more than just a law enforcer but also the judge and executioner. That is very disturbing indeed.