By JEFFREY DAMICOG, AARON RECUENCO, JOSEPH PEDRAJAS
Law enforcement agencies are investigating the “misencounter” between the agents of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) which left two policemen dead and four others wounded in front of a mall in Quezon City on Wednesday night.
PNP chief Gen. Debold Sinas immediately ordered the creation of a board of inquiry composed of investigators from the PNP and the PDEA to conduct an in-depth probe of the incident.
“In the interest of determining the truth behind the incident, a joint PNP-PDEA Board of Inquiry will be formed to determine what transpired and who should be held liable,” said Brig. Gen. Ildebrandi Usana, PNP spokesman.
Usana said Sinas tapped the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) to take the lead on the investigation on the part of the PNP.
Metro Manila police chief Maj. Gen. Vicente Danao Jr. was designated as the official spokesman on the incident.
“The Regional Director, NCRPO (National Capital Region Police Office) has been designated to speak on any updates from the PNP in order to keep the public updated with accurate and relevant information,” said Usana.
Meanwhile, Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra tasked the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to conduct a parallel probe on the incident.
Guevarra said the NBI probe “is separate and distinct from the probe to be conducted by an ad hoc joint PNP-PDEA board of inquiry earlier announced by PNP Chief Debold Sinas,” he said.
Reports said two police officers were killed while another cop and three PDEA agents were wounded in an apparent misencounter between the operatives of the Quezon City Police District (QCPD) and the PDEA in a “legitimate” buy-bust operation on Commonwealth Ave. Wednesday.
Initial investigation conducted by the Batasan Police Station said that an “armed encounter” transpired between members of QCPD’s District Special Operations Unit and agents of PDEA at around 5:45 p.m. at a parking lot of a fastfood restaurant.
But during the operation, the PNP personnel involved had no idea that the people they were transacting were already agents from PDEA, the police report added.
“Kung sino ‘yung nag buy-bust, sino ‘yung ka buy-bust, ‘yun pa ‘yung iniimbestigahan natin,” Danao said.
Police claimed that during the confrontation, PDEA agents first fired shots at the PNP personnel, which left police no option but to fight back.
During the shootout, motorists and commuters were temporarily prohibited to pass through the area. The traffic was also placed at a standstill.
On several videos posted on social media, successive gunshots were heard, which lasted for several minutes, prompting passersby and witnesses to run for safety.
In separate interviews, both the police and the PDEA claimed that the operation they each conducted was “legitimate.”
“As far I know… as I have received from the District Director of the QCPD, meron naman silang pre-op in coordination with PDEA. So ‘yung QCPD ang lakad nila is authorized naman. So kung paano nangyari, ‘yun pa ang titingnan natin,” Danao told reporters in an interview.
“Actually, it’s a legitimate anti-illegal drug operation,” he added.
In a Viber message, PDEA spokesman Derrick Carreon said that so far, what was “clear” was that the agency’s “Special Enforcement Service was” in the area “on a legitimate operation.”
Carreon also said in an interview that the buy-bust money was also marked, which proved that the operation was coordinated.
