Cases of violence against women and children are often the most difficult to handle, professionally or personally, and it takes a special breed of law enforcers to look after the welfare of battered or abused women and children.

While she is relatively the youngest in the force among this year’s awardees, PO2 Ybañez has probably dealt with some of the worst case assignments in the police blotter, mainly consisting of serial rapists – often the victim’s own relatives – preying on very young children.

As part of her work, she often has to convince and actually help the aggrieved parties in filing complaints as well as provide emotional support while guiding and mentoring the victims and their families during the long and tedious legal battle.

In addition to catching no less than five sex offenders and members of a syndicate involved in commercial trafficking of women and children, whose victims often end up in prostitution joints or are forced to work virtually as slaves, PO2 Ybañes also deals with other serious criminal offenders, including robbery suspects. In incidents like these, the trust and support of the various stakeholders in the community play an important role in bringing abuses out into the open, and even more so in apprehending and eventually prosecuting the offenders.

The credibility and integrity established by PO2 Ybañez with various members of the community, including councils of elders, volunteer organizations and civilian informants, have allowed her to reach out and make a difference, especially among the victims.

Her work with the Sala’am Muslim Council of Elders in resolving cultural dimensions of police work in the community has become such an effective avenue of partnership between and among various stakeholders in the community. In return, she has expanded her circle of advocates, partners and supporters by creating special programs for women, students, families, and church-based organizations to become involved not just in the fight against all forms of criminality, but in the promotion of better individual and collective values.