Police admit mistakenly nabbing group waiting for friend

Police on Monday confirmed that a group of six people who were waiting outside their friend's home were mistaken as "tambays" or loiterers and brought to a police station in Makati City.

Makati City police chief Senior Superintendent Rogelio Simon denied that the people were "detained," saying that they were just "invited courteously" to the Police Community Precinct 7 in Guadalupe Nuevo.

Despite this, Simon said that he has already relieved the officer identified as Senior Police Officer 1 James Teaño, who supposedly led the group to the police station, in order to give way to the pre-charge investigation.

"Hindi naman actually na-detain 'yon eh..Pero gayunpaman ang ginawa ko as initial action taken is ni-relieve ko siya don in-assign ko muna dito sa headquarters and I directed the pre-charge na mag-conduct ng investigation kung meron siyang nalabag doon sa ginawa niya," Simon said in a phone interview with GMA News Online.

Facebook user "Ttam Nanaramid" recounted how he and five other friends including his partner were invited to go to the police station while they were just waiting for their friend outside his house in Makati City at around 11 p.m.

The Facebook user said that they were locked inside a cell in PCP 7 along with other arrested individuals.

"[I]pinasok kaming 6 sa loob ng kulungan. Medyo anxious na kami the moment na binuksan nila 'yung selda. There were already people na nasa loob nung selda at mukha talaga silang tambay at nakainom," he said in his post.

He also recounted how his friend, who is a law student, started asking questions over why they were detained but the "questions weren't entertained by any of the Makati Nuevo policemen." The policemen supposedly cited the directive of President Rodrigo Duterte to step up the campaign against loiterers in the streets as the basis for their detention.

"Ang tanong samin 'hindi ba kayo nanonood ng TV?' Ipinapanood pa samin 'yung declaration ni Pres. Rodrigo Duterte about the anti-Tambay law...Ang sabi pa ay 'basta sinabi ng pangulo, batas agad 'yun'," he said.

Simon, meanwhile, explained that Teaño at the time of the incident was the only desk officer, which prompted him to briefly hold all of the arrested individuals inside a "room."

"Ang nangyari doon is ang dami ng tao, dami ng huli ng PCP 7 that night, magisa lang siya na desk officer, naguluhan na siya so takot niya na baka may tumakas doon sa mga may huli which is naghalo halo na...ang ginawa niya para macontrol niya yung lahat ng tao, nilagay niya sa isang kwarto," he said.

"Pagdating ng PCP commander pinalabas niya lahat kasi may mga kasama na siya na magcocontrol at magpoprofile sa kanila. So hindi naman talagang kinulong na kasi may kasalanan, well actually they were invited courteously at talagang sumama rin naman na gusto nila para maprofile sila," he added.

Asked about the veracity of the Facebook post, Simon said that he could not attest to it as it was only one-sided, adding that he has yet to talk to Teaño to hear his side on the matter.

"Hindi ko pa naman nakukuha yung side ng pulis ko doon. I cannot attest to the veracity, kasi one sided lang yung nangyari doon eh, kwento niya lang lahat eh," Simon said.

"So as to give justice naman sa kanya I will have to talk to him but I let the pre-charge to handle the case para kung in case na meron siyang na-violate na procedure namin o policy so whatever the case should be filed eh 'yun ang gagawin natin," he added.

Philippine National Police chief Director General Oscar Albayalde, for his part, downplayed the incident saying that the group have already been released after verification.

"It's because merong nahuli na drinking in public places doon sa katabi nila but then again after verification naman, they were all released. Hindi naman yan porket nahuli ka, idedemanda ka na agad or ikukulong ka na...They will have to explain why they are in that area during the time na nagooperate ang ating pulis," he said.

A total of 2,981 individuals were arrested from June 13 to June 18 over various violation of city and municipal ordinances in Metro Manila. This comes five days after Duterte ordered authorities to step up their campaign against loiterers in the streets whom he viewed as "potential trouble for the public."

Of this number, authorities from the National Capital Region Police Office has arrested 944 individuals "during curfew hours in accordance with the strict implementation of city and municipal ordinances in the metropolis," said Albayalde.

A total of 653 personalities, meanwhile, were apprehended for drinking in public places or streets, 651 for being half naked in streets, and 456 for smoking in public.

Albayalde said 138 others were also arrested for "traffic code violations, illegal vending, videoke, prohibition of students for entering internet shops and the likes, urinating in public place, illegal barker, littering, breach of peace, obstruction," among others. —JST, GMA News