Arrest Quotas and Planting of Evidence

Here's a story a professor of mine, a judge, told in class of an unpleasant experience he had when still a prosecutor.

A case from another prosecutor was transferred to his office. It involved a violation of the Dangerous Drugs Act. A Man had been arrested in a boarding house and the police confiscated some marijuana hidden in a sock in a locked room that belonged to his brother-in-law.

When he saw the man in court, something didn't seem right. Besides the fact that the man's pregnant wife was also present, he felt a certain discomfort. It was as if something told him that this man was innocent. He told the judge that he felt he could not prosecute the case against the man and even asked the PAO lawyer defending him to request a reinvestigation of the case. The PAO lawyer refused.

An extension was granted and the next month, he saw the man's wife in court with a newborn baby. Sometime later, a new PAO lawyer was appointed to defend the man. This new lawyer welcomed my professor's suggestion and requested the court to order a reinvestigation. The new investigation's results horrified and angered my professor.

This was what came out: the man had come all the way from Bukidnon to collect some money his brother-in-law owed him. When he arrived at the boarding house it was nighttime and his brother-in-law was somewhere else. The door to the latter's room was locked. The landlady decided to let him sleep in the living room of the boarding house while waiting for his brother-in-law to arrive. In the dead of night, the police arrived; a complete raiding team. With the man as the only person in sight, they arrested him and forced the door of the brother-in-law's room open. Witnesses then reported one of the policemen take something from his pocket, put it in a sock, toss it into a corner and pretend to pick it up. The witnesses, who were all boarders, were told by the police to tell the prosecution later that the man was arrested for violating the Dangerous Drugs Act an marijuana was found in the brother-in-law's room.

My professor was furious. He called the arresting officers to his office and demanded why they planted the marijuana. One of them replied that they had to make the arrest in order to meet their regular arrest quota. The officers later pleaded with him not to break their dirty secret out and suggested that he ask for a dismissal of the case. My professor berated and browbeat them. Planting of evidence is a crime.

The findings of the reinvestigation were presented in court. The case was dismissed. My professor later apologized profusely to the man and even offered to prosecute the policemen who arrested him. The man refused the offer and went back to Bukidnon.

I wrote this down because I believe that it is not enough to simply discuss this matter in law class. I believe everybody should be more aware of this matter. Remember, the police are public servants; they are supposed to enforce the law, not break it. They cannot be allowed to commit abuses against their masters. Who are their masters? Art. 2., Sec. 1 of the 1987 Constitution gives us the answer: The Philippines is a democratic and republican state. Sovereignty resides in the people and all government authority emanates from them.