BCPO faces challenges in drug-related killings

By Glazyl Y. Masculino

BACOLOD City – The Bacolod City Police Office (BCPO) is having difficulties in solving drug-related killings here as witnesses hesitate to take part in the investigation.

Since January 2020, the city police office has recorded six drug-related killings, including the murder of a village councilman of Barangay 2, which was identified by authorities as one of the seriously drug-affected areas here.

In a press briefing Tuesday, Police Colonel Henry Biñas, BCPO director, said witnesses get scared to testify if they know something about the murder of a person with drug links.

He also said that others won’t cooperate with the police because they are blaming the victims for engaging in illegal drugs which destroys the future of many individuals.

“Budlayan kami mag investigate kun drug personalities or may issue about drugs considering ang mga tawo nahadlok kag natahap. Iban gina basol na gid kung mapatay tungod sa drugs,” he said.

That’s the reality that police are facing, he added.

Earlier, government officials from the city and province of Negros Occidental expressed concern over the rising cases of unsolved killings here.

Although they have difficulties, Biñas said they will continue to probe the incidents until they can get leads and apprehend the perpetrators.

“It will not remain as unsolved. Sometimes, it will take months or even years to solve a case, basta importante continue lang ang investigation,” he said.

He said they cannot just make abrupt conclusions on the cases without investigating them thoroughly.

Among those unsolved cases is the recent killing of Police Corporal Eric Alcosaba who was gunned down in broad daylight along Circumferential Road in Barangay Villamonte here on Feb 15.

Alcosaba went absent without official leave (AWOL) in 2017 after he was transferred to Mindanao following his inclusion in the supplemental affidavit of the late Negros Island top drug suspect Ricky Serenio.

Serenio tagged Alcosaba as among the five police officers who received protection money from a drug group here.

Biñas said that they have no lead yet on the identities of the perpetrators in the former cop’s murder.

But they will invite the three personalities – a lawyer, an active police official, and another police officer – whose faces were printed on a short bond paper contained in a sealed envelope that was found in Alcosaba’s car after the fatal shooting.

Biñas said that the recovery showed that Alcosaba has more knowledge of some personalities and participation outside Bacolod, but it does not guarantee that the three personalities are also linked to illegal drugs.

“We will invite them for questioning or investigation to determine if they knew him (Alcosaba) or if they had connections which could be linked to the killing. What’s the purpose of these photos?” he said.

He said that the two policemen are no longer assigned here.

Biñas said they cannot conclude yet if the car used by the four unidentified gunmen was rented. They also cannot yet comment on allegations that the victim’s car was owned by a relative of a businessman here based on reports.

Despite the number of drug-related killings here, Biñas said that the city police force is doing well when it comes to crime solution efficiency. This means that all suspects were arrested and charged for their crimes.

In fact, he said BCPO ranks second to Guimaras in performance in Western Visayas in 2019, considering that Bacolod is a big city.

Biñas assured that Bacolod is still safe and very peaceful compared to other areas in the region.

“We are really trying our best to solve the cases we have here. But, there are cases that it will take a matter of time,” he said.