POLICE Regional Office (PRO) 7 Director Debold Sinas wants policemen in Bohol who are members of the Kapa-Community Ministry International Inc. to sue the religious corporation in exchange for a lesser penalty.
“That is what we would like them to do, to file a formal complaint against Kapa as they are considered victims also. If not, we will be the ones to file (an) administrative case against them. That is why I told our investigators to conduct dialogues with them. Then later on, we will convince them to file a case,” Sinas said.
He said that aside from the two police officers in Compostela, Cebu, who had been identified as Kapa members, there are 10 policemen in Bohol who are also members.
“There are not just two policemen. I believe there are many. Lately, two policemen were highlighted because we are certain, through our monitoring, that they actually invested in Kapa in Compostela despite my pronouncements and of the chief PNP and of the President. But there are also others in Bohol,” Sinas said.
Sinas issued a warning to police personnel who wanted to invest in Kapa. Not only would he relieve them, he would also take away their service firearms.
As of press time, not a single Kapa member has filed a formal against the ministry.
The Securities and Exchange Commission, however, intends to file criminal charges against Kapa and its officials for continuously accepting “donations” even if the Commission had revoked its permits.
According to Sinas, he already has the names of the Bohol policemen, but he refused to divulge them.
“They confessed already. They said they want to stop their involvement and they want to reclaim their money from Kapa. But I told them that it was not an investment. It’s supposed to be a ‘donation.’ So how can they claim the money when they don’t even have supporting documents with them?” he added.
Sinas clarified that there will still be sanctions against these erring policemen, but their cooperation will lessen these.
“Of course, there will still be cases to be filed against them. But there will be mitigating circumstances should they cooperate in the investigation. The penalty should be lesser if they help us,” he said.
The police official said they are coordinating with the National Bureau of Investigation 7, which implemented the search warrant in the office of Kapa in Compostela last June 11, to get additional names of police personnel who have “donated.”
On one hand, he said Kapa members who wish to organize rallies may do so provided that it is done in freedom parks.
“If they don’t have the necessary permits, then they will be dispersed. But there are also certain areas where
they can freely hold their rallies, such as freedom parks. But they have to make sure they’re not causing any disturbance. We can tolerate rallies as long as these are within bounds of the law,” he said.
Sinas, though, did not say where these freedom parks were located. (WBS)