INTERIOR Secretary Manuel “Mar” Roxas 2nd on Tuesday ordered the relief of Chief Supt. James Melad as head of the Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal and Quezon) police office.

Also relieved were Supt. Rosauro Acio, Batangas provincial police director, Supt. Raul Tacaca, head of the Special Weapon and Tactics (SWAT) unit, Supt. Elpidio Ramirez, chief of the San Juan municipal police station and Chief Insp. Rodolfo Ama, also of the San Juan police.

The sacking of the police officials was ordered days after 13 persons were shot dead by policemen at a checkpoint in Atimonan, Quezon and a day after a man who is facing gun charges was shot dead in San Juan, Batangas.

Roxas said that the relief of the police officers would ensure an impartial investigation of the Atimonan shooting and the killing of Fernando Morales who was shot dead at dawn on Monday by policemen who served a warrant for his arrest.

Morales was reportedly a trusted man of Vic Siman, one of those killed in the Atimonan incident, which the police earlier claimed was a shootout.

Last week, Roxas also sacked the chief of police of Atimonan town and several others in connection with the bloody incident last week.

At a press conference in Camp Crame, Roxas turned over to the National Bureau of Investigation an eight-page report of the Philippine National Police (PNP) Fact-Finding Committee that was formed to look into the shooting incident.

President Benigno Aquino 3rd designated the Investigation bureau as the sole investigating agency to look into the incident.

Roxas also advised Supt. Hansel Marantan, who led the police team that figured in the Atimonan shooting, to submit himself to the investigation process of the bureau.

The Interior secretary earlier said that Marantan, who is confined in a private hospital because of bullet wounds he allegedly sustained during the Atimonan shooting, refused to cooperate with the PNP fact-finding body.

Marantan reportedly declined to give a statement, or show his wounds as well as the slugs recovered from his body.

Roxas vowed that there would be no whitewash in the investigation of both the Atimonan shooting and the killing of Morales in Batangas, which are believed to be related.

Members of the Batangas Provincial Intelligence Unit, SWAT and San Juan police killed Morales when he reportedly tried to elude arrest.

Senior Supt. Rosauro Acio, Batangas provincial director, said that the arresting team were forced to shoot Morales when he attempted to escape.

The victim’s relatives admitted that he used to work for Victor Siman.

With A Report From Roselle Aquino