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PDEA-Ilocos head sacked for releasing probe info: 20 more cops probed on large shabu haul
By Jerry Padilla

SAN FERNANDO, La Union – The police task force probing the shabu laboratory, touted as the largest in the country and recently raided in Naguilian, La Union, is set to investigate 20 more policemen to explain how the illegal facility managed to operate more than a year.

This, as the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency director in the Ilocos region was relieved from her post Thursday for allegedly releasing confidential information to the media on the ongoing investigation on the shabu laboratory.

Supt. Jane Andres Aunzo, PDEA regional director, was summoned to the PDEA headquarters in Manila and would be replaced by a former Army official, a certain Roberto Opeña, in turnover rites at Camp Diego Silang here tomorrow.

Task Force Bimmotobot, named after the village where the shabu lab was located, is now probing how the syndicate was able to bring in chemicals unnoticed and sneak out finished products despite checkpoints in the area during and after the elections last year.

“They (policemen) did not necessarily participate, but we think they had knowledge of the operation, particularly on the delivery of drugs and chemicals,” a source said.
Another source said law enforcers might have been threatened or bribed, which probably explains why they failed to report anything or do something about it.

Heavily armed personnel, mostly from the Regional Mobile Group, manned checkpoints along Naguilian Road to ensure peaceful and orderly elections last year.
Supt. Dionicio Borromeo, tagged by Dante Palaganas, an arrested caretaker of the shabu lab, as one of the syndicate’s alleged protectors, was then the RMG director before he became police chief of Dagupan City.

Borromeo has been relieved from his post following Palaganas’ allegations. He is now at Camp Crame facing an investigation.

The drug syndicate, according to Palaganas, transported shabu four times to Metro Manila without encountering any problems at the checkpoints.

He said the shabu lab began operating in May last year. It was raided last July 9, yielding chemicals that can produce shabu worth about a trillion pesos.

Earlier, authorities said that aside from Borromeo, four other policemen were being investigated.

The Criminal Investigation and Detection Group in the Ilocos region headed by Senior Superintendent Marvin Bolabola will take custody of policemen found to be involved in the illegal activity.

Meanwhile, a high-ranking police official said PDEA Director General Dionisio Santiago was bothered with the raw information Aunzo had allegedly given the media because this might affect the investigation.

“I don’t know the real reason why she (Aunzo) was relieved because the order came from Gen. Santiago. They may have reasons for her relief but we would have been more prepared in the investigation into the shabu lab if she stayed longer,” said the police official, who was involved in the investigation.

Task Force Bimmotobot, headed by Chief Supt. Romeo Gatan, earlier designated Aunzo as one of its spokesmen but later withheld her authority to do so due to the alleged release of confidential information in her media interviews.

A PDEA employee said they received information Aunzo had been relieved from her post as Region 1 director and was at the PDEA office in Manila attending a command conference on Aug. 30.

The source said he has not heard of any reason for Aunzo’s relief, adding though that a PDEA regional director is normally replaced when he or she has served for two years in his or her position.

Meanwhile, Gatan said the task force’s legal team has finished the amended complaint it is filing this week.

Gatan said the amended complaint was based on the supplemental affidavit of Dante Palaganas, the arrested caretaker of the shabu lab busted in Barangay Bimmotobot, Naguilian town.

Gatan said US law enforcers have also stepped into the investigation to find out the links of the shabu lab’s operators with international syndicates.

Gatan said US authorities are scheduled to visit this week the site of the shabu lab where authorities seized six truckloads of chemicals that could produce about a trillion pesos worth of the illegal drug.