President Rodrigo Duterte promised he will ensure the police officer who shot dead a 52-year-old woman in Quezon City last week will go to prison.
The commander-in-chief said he would not tolerate policemen who commit crimes.
“He will be imprisoned. That’s for sure. I will see to it that he will go to prison,” he said in a television interview.
Duterte was referring to the case of Master Sgt. Hensie Zinampan who was caught on video fatally shooting his neighbor, Lilybeth Valdez, in Greater Fairview village in Quezon City on May 31.
Zinampan is already in police custody and has been slapped with criminal and administrative charges.
The latest shooting incident came less than six months after the killing of 52-year-old Sonia Gregorio and her 25-year-old son, Frank Anthony, in Paniqui, Tarlac by their neighbor, Master Sgt. Jonel Nuezca in December.
Duterte questioned how cops who could not handle “petty quarrels” were able to pass the neuro-psychiatric test for aspiring police officers.
“Those cops are too bold. They easily lose their temper. How were they able to pass the neuro [psychiatric test] if they could not handle a petty quarrel?” the President said.
Duterte said while he would only defend a policeman or a soldier if they kill a person in the line of duty, he cannot extend the same protection to erring uniformed personnel.
“If you do your duty in accordance with the law and then you get into trouble, I will defend you…. But those who erred will have to pay,” the President said.
Interior Secretary Eduardo Año earlier ordered the Philippine National Police to tighten measures that would instill discipline among its ranks in the wake of incidents of violence involving police officers.
PNP Chief, Gen. Guillermo Eleazar likewise directed police commanders to ensure the strict monitoring of the behavior of their personnel, especially those who are manifesting signs of emotional and mental health problems.
