The cop ‘poser’ and the seized fake PNP uniforms.
CIDG-NCRFU nabs ‘fake’ police major in QC
AGENTS of the National Capital Region Field Unit (NCRFU) of the Philippine National Police Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG) on Tuesday night arrested a “fake” police major wanted for qualified theft in Quezon City, PNP-CIDG Director Brigadier General Romeo M. Caramat Jr. said.
The official said that the 44-year-old suspect was arrested inside his house at Barangay Bagong Pag-asa, Q.C., by members of the CIDG-NCRFU under Col. Hansel M. Marantan at 11:50 p.m. Tuesday.
Caramat said that the CIDG-NCRFU men were serving the warrant of arrest for qualified theft issued against the suspect by Judge Primo Sio Jr. of the Q.C. Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 96 on June 30, 2020, when the latter identified himself as a “police official.”
The accused showed full resistance and disobedience to the CIDG team and introduced himself as “Police Major Joel James Victoria” while presenting a supposed PNP identification card, the PNP-CIDG director said.
He got into deeper trouble after the CIDG officers discovered that he was a “fake” cop during a verification with the PNP Directorate for Personnel and Records Management.
Instead of being allowed to post a mere P40,000 bail, the suspect is now facing additional charges for usurpation of authority, violation of Republic Act (RA) 10591 or the Comprehensive Firearm and Ammunition Regulations Act of 2013, illegal use of uniforms and insignia and resistance and disobedience to a person in authority under the Revised Penal Code, Caramat said.
This after the CIDG-NCRFU team recovered a caliber 40mm High-Point Smith & Wesson semi-automatic pistol with a magazine containing ten live ammunition, a PNP ID, an Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) ID with the name “Major Joel James M. Victoria,” a PNP General Office Attire (GOA) uniform with nameplate and insignias and a “CIS-NCR QCPD” t-shirt with the initials “James V.”
The suspect failed to present any gun papers for his pistol.
The pieces of evidence were confiscated by the CIDG-NCRFU in the presence of the accused and a local barangay official.
Marantan said they are also checking information that apart from his qualified theft case, the accused is also involved in large-scale estafa and other fraudulent activities in Q.C. and other parts of Metro Manila.
The CIDG-NCRFU chief said they conducted the operation with the support of the Philippine Army Intelligence Regiment, which also received information that the accused has been identifying himself as an “Army Major” each time he goes around the metropolis.
