ANGELES CITY- A 54-year-old American was arrested here the other day after two girls studying in a local elementary school pointed to him as their sexual molester.
Angeles City Police Office (ACPO) director Senior Supt. Eden Ugale led in the arrest of the American whom he did not immediately name. The suspect resides in Barangay Balibago here.
He said the suspect was charged yesterday with statutory rape and violation of R.A. 7610 or An Act Providing for Stronger Deterrence and Special protection against child Abuse, Exploitation and Discrimination, and for Other Purposes.
The suspect was detained at Police Station 4 pending issuance of a commitment order from the court.
A report prepared by Senior Inspector Joel Bagaoisan, deputy chief of the Criminal Investigation and Detective Management Branch of the local police, said that Corazon Manansala, principal of Sta. Maria Elementary School in Balibago alerted police Station 4 on reports that two of her pupils were sexually abused by the American.
A police team headed by Senior Inspector Felimon Oyan then went to the school to interview the girls, aged 10 and 11. One of the girls said the suspect performed oral sex on her while he asked the other girl to watch.
With the suspect and his location identified by the children, Oyan and his team were able to arrest the suspect immediately last Tuesday.
Bagaoisan noted that the arrest was made while some 80 cops from the city police office were undergoing a five-day seminar against sexual abuse of children being conducted by the Department of Tourism (DOT), led by Undersecretary Ma. Victoria Jasmin.
”One of the topics was on the prevention and reduction of sexual abuse and exploitation of children in the country, especially in areas most frequented by foreign tourists,” he noted.
The DOT has been conducting awareness seminars on the subject of “Child Wise Tourism” and prevention of abuse against children in places visited by foreign nationals like Boracay, Cebu and Baguio City in an effort to rid the industry of pedophiles.
Child Wise is a global network of organizations and individuals working together to eliminate child prostitution, child pornography and trafficking of children.. The network is committed to protecting children from abuse and exploitation in Australia, Asia and the Pacific.
