By NONOY LACSON
ZAMBOANGA CITY – Police operatives arrested Thursday night a town police chief in Zamboanga del Norte for allegedly extorting money from a public school teacher.
Police Regional Office for Zamboanga Peninsula (PRO-9) director Police Brig. Gen. Jesus Cambay Jr. identified the suspect as Police Capt. Haran Ulah, acting police chief of Godod, Zamboanga del Norte.
Ulah was arrested by the PNP Integrity Monitoring and Enforcement Group (IMEG) Mindanao Field Office operatives led by Police Lt Col. Joshua Alejandro at about 5 p.m. inside his office at Poblacion, Godod.
Cambay sad the police official was nabbed on complaints of Jose Abarca, a teacher at Sarawagan Elementary school in the same town and resident of Barangay Raba in Godod.
Initial investigation disclosed that on May 29, 2020, the suspect demanded P10,000 from Abarca as protection money so that the latter’s treasure hunting and mining at Sitio Riverside, Barangay Raba will be spared from police raids.
Ulah also assured Abarca that his laborers working at the mining site will not be apprehended and jailed.
Recovered from the possession of Ulah was the P5,000 marked money paid by Abarca, his issued M16 rifle and .45-caliber pistol, and two cellular phones.
Cambay said the incident should serve as a warning to policemen involved in extortion activities in the region.