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PNP condemns laser pointing at police choppers in KOJC incident

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Hernel Tocmo

ABS-CBN News

The Philippine National Police (PNP) condemned actions allegedly committed by the members of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ (KOJC) who may have used laser devices against police helicopters.ABS-CBN News captured video footage of a PNP helicopter over the KOJC compound in Davao City on Sunday afternoon.Chief PNP General Rommel Marbil was reportedly on board the chopper to conduct an aerial survey over the compound of the televangelist Apollo Quiboloy, who has gone into hiding after facing arrest warrants.Light from lasers can be seen on the PNP chopper.&quot;Such behavior is a direct threat to the safety and operational effectiveness of our law enforcement aviation units,&quot; said Police Major Catherine Dela Rey, spokesperson of the Police Regional Office XI, in a video statement.The PNP said that the use of lasers against aircraft is not only dangerous but also a violation of aviation safety regulations and legal standards.&quot;We urge you to stop such actions for the safety of all involved,&quot; Dela Rey said.KOJC&#x27;s legal counsel Atty. Israelito Torreon said that the PNP needs to prove whether the lasers came from the members of the religious group.&quot;This they failed to do knowing that there are hundreds of policemen inside the KOJC Compound and there are also other people beside the KOJC Compound,&quot; he said in a statement posted on Facebook.&quot;The probability that it was the police who did it is not far-fetched knowing that they have overwhelming presence inside the KOJC Compound,&quot; he claimed.Torreon also claimed that if the PNP can prove that the laser was used by a KOJC member, the person may have been triggered out of frustration and as a countermeasure.Quiboloy, whom the government considers a fugitive, has been in hiding since April after courts in Davao City and Pasig issued warrants of arrest against him and others over trafficking and abuse cases.His lawyers claimed the accusations against him are recycled and were made by disgruntled former members of KOJC.He has also claimed without evidence that the government and the US are conspiring against him and that he is under threat of &quot;extraordinary rendition&quot; — essentially state-backed kidnapping.Quiboloy has also been on the wanted list of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in the United States “for his alleged participation in a labor trafficking scheme that brought church members to the United States via fraudulently obtained visas.”The Philippine National Police (PNP) has tried to serve warrants on Quiboloy multiple times, but members of the KOJC have been rallying against these attempts, claiming that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s administration is only trying to persecute the pastor due to his ties to the Duterte family.

The Philippine National Police (PNP) condemned the actions allegedly committed by the members of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ (KOJC) who may have used laser devices against police helicopters.

The Philippine National Police (PNP) condemned the actions allegedly committed by the members of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ (KOJC) who may have used laser devices against police helicopters.