Superintendent Marvin Marcos, the police colonel embroiled in controversy over the killing of Mayor Rolando Espinosa Sr of Albuera, Leyte, has come a long way. 

Fifteen months after the mayor’s slay inside the Leyte provincial jail, and 8 months after sitting through heated Senate hearings over his reinstatement, Marcos sits among the PNP’s top brass at a party in no less than the police national base, Camp Crame.

The PNP Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) celebrated its 65th founding anniversary on Wednesday, February 28, and all its top officials and recognized agents rubbed shoulders with each other inside the camp’s Multi-Purpose Center.

THIS MORNING: PNP Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) celebrates its 65th founding anniversary in Camp Crame. @rapplerdotcom pic.twitter.com/5LjVubWz0m

— Rambo Talabong (@rambotalabong) February 28, 2018

The men in blue’s number 2, Deputy Director General for Administration Ramon Apolinario, CIDG chief Director Roel Obusan, and the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency (NICA) chief Alex Monteagudo sat onstage.

Just 3 tables away sat Superintendent Marcos, exchanging stories and handshakes with his colleagues.

“Wala nga akong award eh (I don’t even have an award)!” he joked to Rappler after being asked in a chance interview how he was.

“Ito, okay lang ako (I’m here, I’m okay),” he added in a more serious tone, as the event came to a close.

Marcos is not lying.

In the months that led up to his return to Camp Crame, the justice department downgraded the murder charge against him to homicide. This allowed him and his men to post bail. He also enjoys the trust of President Rodrigo Duterte, who repeatedly promised pardon should he be found guilty.

Holding the top post for CIDG Region XII (Soccsksargen), he stands as a candidate for promotion to a senior superintendent — a level one rank away from becoming a police general.

Marcos said he would stay in Metro Manila “for a while” before going back to south-central Mindanao, where he will continue doing his job – his task even before the death of Mayor Espinosa – of catching high-level criminals for the PNP. 

He is worth watching. – Rappler.com