Filipino cops accused of playing 'wheel of torture' game as way to punish criminal suspects

MANILA, Philippines – Philippine human rights officials say they have uncovered a secret detention facility near Manila where police play a "wheel of torture" game to determine how to torture crime suspects, mostly suspected drug traffickers, to extract information and have fun.

Commission on Human Rights Chairwoman Loretta Ann Rosales said Tuesday that she was horrified by the discovery of the torture scheme more than three decades after the Philippines emerged from a brutal era of dictatorship.

Human Rights group Amnesty International says that detainees were punched if the "torture wheel" stopped at "20 seconds Manny Pacquiao," named after the popular boxer, or hung upside down if it stopped at "30-second bat position." It called the practice despicable.

Police say they have taken several officers into custody and were investigating the alleged torture.