Cop in ‘palit-puri’ conspire charged
The Manila policeman accused of forcing a 15-year-old girl to have sex with him, allegedly in exchange
for the freedom of her parents who had been arrested on drug charges, could be dismissed from the service after
the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) filed a grave misconduct case against him on Monday.
PO1 Eduardo Valencia of the Sampaloc police station will also face a criminal charge of rape under Republic Act No. 7610,
or the Special Protection of Children Against Abuse, Exploitation and Discrimination Act.
Underhanded tactics
The details of the alleged rape and clear abuse of power immediately touched off a larger discussion about the internal
culture of the Philippine National Police and underhanded tactics used by other rogue policemen in the government’s war on drugs.
Public criticism of the incident was further fueled by a
viral clip of Valencia defending himself by telling NCRPO chief, Director Guillermo Eleazar, that what happened was nothing new,
widely interpreted as an admission that the “palit-puri” scheme (in street lingo, it means sexual favors from a suspect or their relative
in exchange for the dropping of charges) had become normal within the PNP.
But Eleazar said in an interview on Monday that Valencia was referring to suspects who routinely file countercharges against policemen who arrest them.
He also insisted that the palit-puri scheme was “not rampant” in the PNP.
“He denied the rape, but there’s no way out for him
because he really did it,” said the NCRPO chief who pointed to a mountain of proof against Valencia, including
medicolegal tests which showed that the girl had indeed been raped.
Mother’s revelation
The minor’s mother had reported the rape to the police,
alleging that Valencia brought her daughter to a motel in Manila on Oct. 26.
According to Eleazar, Valencia arrested the girl’s parents earlier in the day on drug charges. The young girl and
her aunt also brought in although there was no case against them.
Eleazar said that while the family at the Sampaloc police station, Valencia talked to the girl “while holding a gun.”
claiming that Valencia got her girl to a motel Manila on Oct. 26.
As indicated by Eleazar, Valencia captured the young lady’s folks prior in the day on medication charges. The young lady and her auntie were likewise acquired in spite of the fact that there was no argument against them.
Zero resistance
Eleazar said that while the family at the Sampaloc police headquarters, Valencia conversed with the young lady “while holding a firearm.”
“He undermined her and intimated that she ought to engage in sexual relations with him on the off chance that she needs him to drop the case [against her mother],” the NCRPO boss included.
As the argument against the couple prepared, Valencia left with the young lady and her close relative, saying he bring them home. Be that as it may, in the wake of dropping off the close relative, he took the young lady to a motel.
As indicated by Eleazar, other youngsters and families who had exploited similarly should don’t hesitate to stand up as the injured individual’s mom did, in spite of being a medication suspect.
“We won’t endure [actions like Valencia’s],” he stated, including: “I need this to be a notice to villain police. We are sparing future exploited people.
Valencia, who joined the PNP in 2014, right now kept in his police headquarters, while the 15-year-old young lady under the guardianship of the social welfare division.