A ROOKIE policeman is in hot water after he was seen in the company of a suspected drug pusher in Barangay Tubod, Toledo City last Tuesday afternoon.
Supt. Ali Baron, the city police chief, identified the officer as PO1 Marvin Tundag of the Pinamungajan Police Station.
Tundag was with Wilson Villanueva, who is in the list of suspected drug personalities operating in Toledo City.
Baron, in a phone interview, said he already informed Cebu Provincial Police Office Director Noel Gillamac, who immediately ordered an investigation on Tundag.
Tundag and Villanueva evaded arrest.
Sun.Star Cebu tried to interview Tundag through his cell phone, but he cannot be reached yesterday.
Relieved
Senior Insp. Ruben Verbo, Pinamungahan Police chief, said he already relieved Tundag as the head of the station’s police community relations office.
“I already prepared a memorandum for him to explain,” he said in a phone interview. “He told me that he did not know Villanueva was a suspected drug pusher.”
He said Tundag can be charged with an administrative complaint if the latter fails to give a reasonable answer.
Three large packs of what appeared to be shabu worth P57,000, drug paraphernalia, sachets with traces of shabu, a .45 pistol and magazine loaded with four bullets were seized.
Baron said he was tipped off by an informant about armed persons on board a car (NAB-213) owned by Tundag.
His team composed of the members of mobile patrol group and Special Weapons and Tactics (Swat) located the car parked outside the house of Villanueva’s live-in partner.
Escape
The police barged into the house, but Tundag and Villanueva were able to escape by breaking the jalousie window in the back portion of the house.
The two and their unidentified companions jumped over the fence.
A Swat operative was able to identify Tundag, who was his batchmate in the police training.
Baron said complaints of violating Republic Act 9165 (Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002) and illegal possession of firearm will be filed against the suspects.