Edilberto Leonardo

Edilberto Leonardo
Leonardo in 2024
Born
Edilberto D.C. Leonardo
NationalityFilipino
Police career
ServicePhilippine National Police
DivisionCriminal Investigation and Detection Group
Service yearsUntil 2020
RankPolice Colonel

Edilberto D.C. Leonardo[1] is a retired police officer and government official.

Education

[edit]

Leonardo attended the Rizal Memorial Colleges in Davao City where he obtained a master's degree in educational management in 2009; as well as the University of Makati where he got his executive doctorate in leadership-public management in 2019.[2]

Career

[edit]

Police career

[edit]

Leonardo was an officer for the Philippine National Police. He was noted for being part of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG).

He graduated from the PNP Academy in 1998.[3]

In May 2016, Leonardo was tasked by then president-elect Rodrigo Duterte to implement the "Davao model" in a nationwide scale as alleged by underclassman Royina Garma who endorsed him for the role.[4] As per Garma, Leonardo was endorsed since he fit Duterte's specification of a person who is a PNP officer or an Iglesia ni Cristo member.[5] This led to the implementation of the police-led Philippine drug war.

In 2017, Leonardo was stationed as commander of the Manila Police District's (MPD) Moriones police station.[3] In the same year, Leonardo would be tagged as one of the suspects in the International Criminal Court's (ICC) investigation on Duterte's war on drugs campaign.[6][7]

His last role in the PNP was being chief of the CIDG for the Davao region, retiring from police duty on September 29, 2020.[8]

DENR

[edit]

Leonardo worked in the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) as the body's undersecretary for protected areas and special concerns. He concurrently was the executive director of Anti-Illegal Logging Task Force of the DENR.[2] He was also director of the Biodiversity Management Bureau until 2021.[9]

Napolcom

[edit]

On February 14, 2022, Leonardo was appointed by president Rodrigo Duterte as commissioner for the National Police Commission (Napolcom)[2]

During the administration of president Bongbong Marcos, the House of Representatives quad committee had him as a guest in its inquiries in September 2024. During the hearings he was alleged to play a part in the 2016 Davao prison killings and the killing of PCSO board secretary Wesley Barayuga in 2020. He resigned on October 4, 2024.[8]

Personal life

[edit]

Leonardo is a member of the Iglesia ni Cristo.[10]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Pilapil, John Kevin (May 20, 2015). "Davao CIDG is nation's best regional unit". SunStar. SunStar Publishing Inc. Retrieved October 14, 2024.
  2. ^ a b c Tupas, Emmanuel (March 2, 2022). "New Napolcom commissioner named". The Philippine Star. Retrieved October 14, 2024.
  3. ^ a b Bolledo, Jairo (September 3, 2024). "'DDS cops' flourished under Duterte, but now being probed under Marcos". Rappler. Retrieved October 14, 2024.
  4. ^ Cruz, Maricel (October 14, 2024). "Garma: CIDG-Davao served as hub for Duterte's reward-driven drug war". Manila Standard. Retrieved October 14, 2024.
  5. ^ Bolledo, Jairo (October 14, 2024). "How Duterte's 5 am call to Garma starts a nationwide drug war". Rappler. Retrieved October 15, 2024.
  6. ^ Esmaquel, Paterno II (April 24, 2017). "Complaint vs Duterte filed before Int'l Criminal Court". Rappler. Retrieved October 14, 2024.
  7. ^ Tordesillas, Ellen (July 26, 2024). "Can 3 high-ranking PNP officials get out of ICC 'suspects' list?". Vera Files. Retrieved October 14, 2024.
  8. ^ a b Corrales, Nestor (October 13, 2024). "Leonardo, tied to inmates and PCSO exec's killings, quits Napolcom". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved October 14, 2024.
  9. ^ "DENR welcomes new BMB chief". Department of Environment and Natural Resources. September 30, 2021. Retrieved October 14, 2024.
  10. ^ Lalu, Gabriel Pabico (October 24, 2024). "Keep religion off drug war issues, says solon". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved October 25, 2024.