As the hunt for fugitive pastor Apollo Quiboloy entered its 10th day, the Police Regional Office in Davao Region (PRO-11) remains confident that the leader of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ (KOJC), is still hiding inside the KOJC complex in Davao City.
“Based on our intelligence and the information we received, Quiboloy is still in KOJC,” Maj. Catherine Dela Rey, the PRO-11 spokesperson, said during a press briefing Monday.
When asked about the televangelist’s possible hiding place, Dela Rey declined to provide details, citing the need to protect the integrity of their operation.
Meanwhile, Vice President Sara Duterte expressed support for members of KOCJ, which celebrated its 39th anniversary on Sept. 1.
Duterte, who is in Davao City, also said Quiboloy was no longer in the KOJC compound but in “heaven.”
Dela Rey also denied reports that police were planting evidence or bringing explosives into the KOJC compound without undergoing proper scanning procedures.
“With or without scanners, we will not bring in anything to plant evidence. Any materials brought inside are used solely to aid in the search for Quiboloy,” she said.
“Rest assured, we will uphold human rights and exercise maximum police tolerance. There are no explosives being brought inside.”
She also advised KOJC members that protests outside the compound are not the appropriate means to prove Quiboloy’s innocence.
“Our mandate is to arrest him and bring him to court. I hope the members and the community understand that we are just doing our job,” Dela Rey said.
She added that despite the ongoing operation, Davao City and the region remain peaceful.
The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) meanwhile said it is ready to assist and reinforce the PNP in the manhunt Quiboloy.
In an interview, AFP Spokesperson Colonel Margareth Padilla said, the AFP is in a “supporting role” to the PNP in serving the warrant for the controversial religious leader.
Padilla said the AFP did not deploy any additional military forces outside Davao City but was to assist the PNP “in any manner in the performance of their duty.”
Padilla also explained that all the law enforcement agencies and the military are hand in hand when it comes to its enforcement activities like what NBI and other agencies are doing.
The officer also emphasized that the AFP is ready to augment the PNP as well as other reinforcement agencies.
