Ombudsman junks charges vs. Manila cops over hidden jail cell

The Office of the Ombudsman has dismissed the criminal and administrative complaints filed by the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) against Manila policemen over a hidden cell that was discovered in 2017.

A nine-page resolution approved by Deputy Ombudsman Cyril Ramos in December 2020 said the CHR failed to establish probable cause against the cops from Raxabago Police Station 1 and had insufficient evidence to prove that the police acted in bad faith.

The complaints stemmed from the CHR’s discovery of several individuals detained in a small, cramped cell hidden behind a cabinet in a Tondo police station. The detainees also claimed that police asked them for P40,000 to P200,000 in exchange for freedom. 

“It is beyond dispute that the twelve newly arrested persons were detained inside a cramped space,” said the Ombudsman’s resolution, a copy of which was obtained by GMA News Online.

“However, there is no showing that respondents did so in bad faith. Since the burden of proof lies with the CHR, it was incumbent upon said office to prove that there was another available confinement area which is better than the one where said detainees were locked up,” it added.

The resolution also said the CHR “failed to sufficiently controvert” the claim that there was a separate entrance along Capulong Street and that the cabinet “also served as a wall or partition.”

As for the criminal complaint, the resolution said the CHR “failed to show by clear and strong evidence that the detained persons were being held beyond the period allowed by law without a complaint being filed against them.”

It added that other allegations such as the maltreatment of prisoners, grave threats, and grave coercion by robbery or extortion “are not supported by independent, impartial, and credible evidence.”

The CHR conducted a surprise visit to the Tondo police station in 2017 after it was tipped about extortion by an informant.

Superintendent Roberto Domingo, then-station commander of Raxabago Police Station 1, said the detainees were kept in what he called an “investigation room” while awaiting inquest proceedings and dismissed the extortion claims as mere allegations.

Domingo was later temporarily relieved from his post to give way to a Philippine National Police investigation. 

CHR urges review

Meanwhile, the CHR urged the Ombudsman to “thoroughly review their decision.”

“The Ombudsman's decision to junk the case is a setback in our effort to eliminate the illegal practice of using secret detention facilities,” it said in a statement on Tuesday.

“CHR filed the charges to ensure accountability among erring police officers. Scalawags among the police ranks will not be truly dealt with if those who have committed serious violations, particularly concerning fundamental human rights, are not held to account,” it added.

The CHR vowed to continue its pursuit of criminal and administrative charges against the police officers involved in the hidden cell.

“The shocking and dehumanizing violations against the rights of detained persons in the MPD secret cell necessitate accountability," it said. "Their lapses and actions in this case negated their very mandate, which is ‘to serve and protect.’” — RSJ, GMA News